Of Blood and Battle
by Jecir
Summary: They stood, the heralds of death, without fear of armies, and asked one question. Back-dropped by the fires of the 12th Cyber Legion, Rory Williams, the Last Centurion, asked, "Where is my wife!" Sequel to Unwritten. AU "A Good Man Goes to War" and "Let's Kill Hitler." "Let's Kill Hitler" REVISED AND REPOSTED 7/31/13
1. A Question Asked

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter One: A Question Asked

They came to ask a question. And the answer was the key to life or death. They came, burning across the stars and tearing the seams of reality, leaving bodies and broken souls in their wake. Those who survived could only whisper their testimony in fear and awe, in wonder and despair.

"I shot him," a soldier of the Silence swore. "I did. I saw the bullets hit their mark. He _should_ have died, but he didn't. He just didn't."

"He laughed," another said with equal confusion, equal reverence. "He just laughed when Jax said his name. A simple name, almost…innocent. He laughed. Then he shot him."

"Did you see?" they would say. "Do you know?"

"She burned," a young woman, barely of age, breathed. "Every move she made radiated. It was as if I were looking at a goddess. When she spoke, all of reality cried out in ecstasy or…or agony."

"And when she attacked," survives would recount over mugs of frothing ales and in front of roaring fires, "Wolves howled."

"Did you see him?" the child asked his father. "The last great warrior of earth? Is it true he drove away whole battalions of Sontarans and Daleks?"

The father would never answer his son; how could he? The truth was far too frightening. Yet, his story spread through the universe. The warrior bred of warriors who defended his lover through eons and beyond; who traversed the stars even now in search of what was his.

The Immortal Face of Boe.

The Golden- Haired Bad Wolf.

And The Last Centurion.

Their story became legend in an instant; a legend told in secret whispers by wise elders, hardened soldiers, and mischievous children. In one night, three impossibilities conquered galaxies, and yet…and yet!

"And yet, they are but a mere spark of the fire that was _him_," Lorna Bucket said to the novices around her. It was forbidden to speak of _him_, but she could not help it. Once you meet him, you never forget. And she never forgot. "He never rose his fist, never fired a weapon; he never had to. A flash of his smile and a wave of his wand was all he needed, and his enemies would run. But there is nowhere to run when he comes after you."

No, nowhere to run. There was nowhere their enemies could run or hide. Not even the mighty Cyber Empire could withstand the onslaught of the Oncoming Storm.

When faced with the Last Centurion, flanked by the Face of Boe and the Bad Wolf, the Commander of the Twelfth Cyber Legion felt a twinge of terror deep within his metal chest. They stood, the heralds of death, without fear of his armies, and asked one question. One simple question. Back-dropped by the fires of the Cyber Armada burning, Rory Williams, the Last Centurion asked, "Where is _my wife_!"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

"It is time."

Amy felt her heart break at those three simple words. But she would not give Madam Kovarian the satisfaction of seeing her pain. She turned away from the large bay window granting her a look at hopelessness. From her prison, she could see the massive army martialed for a single purpose: to keep her here, away from her husband, her friends, and her Doctor. It was a sight meant to instill within her Scottish heart a sense of futility. They had her trapped. They were taking her baby. And there was nothing she could do about it.

But they were wrong. Like the moment she awoke in the hands of the Silence—a memory she now knew to have been a dream viewed through the eyes of her ganger and yet still so true to her heart—she felt only assurance that she would be rescued. Even now, as she turned to face her daughter, her beautiful Melody, she saw the nervous glances being exchange amidst the soldiers. They knew what was coming. They had heard the rumors. Amy did not hide the smirk that twisted her lips. Her husband was coming.

Melody lay in her crib, innocent to the evil all around her. Amy reached down for her daughter, holding on to the hope that this would not be the final time she did. Memories, or ganger dreams, surfaced as she cuddled her baby, committing her smell, her face, her hair, the sound of her coos, and every other detail to memory. She remembered the pictures in the orphanage; a photo journal of a little girl raised alone only to be sacrificed to the whim of the Silence. She closed her eyes. _I won't let that happen to you_, she promised. She lowered her daughter so that she could look into her tiny eyes. "Time can be rewritten."

"Two minutes," Madam Kovarian hissed.

Amy glared at the hateful woman. That horrid creature had been the sole witness to the birth of her daughter. Amy hated her all the more for that. The fiery ginger mother purposefully turned her back on the contingent of soldiers sent to take Melody away from her. They would not succeed. She had to have faith that, no matter what, these people would not win.

She looked down at her daughter, a fearful thought trickling through her mind, asking, _But what if?_ What if this is the final time she would see her daughter? What could she say to prepare her newborn for what was to come? She looked up at the sterile white ceiling. "I wish I could tell you that you'll be loved," she confessed. "That you'll be safe and cared for and protected." Now was not the time for sentimentality. Fire burned in her eyes; strength filled her heart; and she looked down at her daughter and declared, "But this isn't a time for lies. What you are going to be, Melody, is very, very brave."

Melody looked up at her with wide blue eyes. Amy smiled, knowing her daughter could hear her. Science be damned; her child understood her. That truth encouraged her to turn to face her enemies. "But not as brave as they'll have to be," she taunted. "Because there's someone coming."

The air thickened with fear. The soldiers shuffled uncomfortably. Madam Kovarian did not react, nor did the Monks standing in the background. "I don't know where he is," Amy continued, knowing she had little time. "Or what he's doing, but trust me. He's on his way. There's a man who's never going to let us down. Not even an army can get in the way."

Madam Kovarian had had enough. A sinister smirk twisted her lips as she strode forward and ripped the child from Amy's arms, ignoring the young mother's sudden plea to "Leave her!"

Two soldiers had to hold Amy back as Madam Kovarian lowered Melody into an open white pod. Amy jerked against their hold. Kovarian, in an insult to grace, allowed Amy a few last moments.

Amy cupped her daughter's tiny hands, trying to impart as much of her warmth as she could should the worst happen. "He's the last of his kind," she said, painting the image of a man who would become the hero of Melody's dreams in the dark future. "He looks young but he's lived for hundreds and hundreds of years. Wherever they take you Melody, however scared you are, I promise you, you will never be alone." Amy bent down and sealed that promise with a kiss. "Because this man is your father. He has a name, but the people of our world know him better as the Last Centurion. And he is leading an army of the bravest, most powerful time travelers this universe has ever known. They are coming to save us."

"Enough."

The two soldiers dragged Amy back, allowing their commander to finish the task.

"You really should not tell stories like that," Kovarian chided as she closed the pod. She turned to her captive, a condescending smile on her face. "It is harmful to a young mind to have false hopes sown so early."

"You won't get away with this," Amy hissed. "You may think you've won, but my husband is coming! He is coming with the Doctor and Rose and Jack, and they _will_ stop you."

Madam Kovarian grinned. "I'm counting on that."

**AN: And the story continues. To all my loyal readers returning for this installment, I welcome you. I am really excited for this one. There will be a lot of answers, so get ready. And, if any of you are avid fanartists and feel inspired by this series, by all means, draw away, and then send me the link. I am a sucker for fanart. Well, here we go. Allons-y!**


	2. A Statement to be Made

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Two: A Statement to be Made

_Of blood and battle…of blood and battle….of blood and battle!_

Those words haunted her. Like her name, scattered across time and space to create a path to lead her home, those words carved a path through her mind to a time that was yet never was.

She knew she was sleeping, but she had never truly slept since her return. It started subtly, the change in her mind; it was evident only in what she thought were dreams. Images of a time where sorrow and happiness collided; the face of a man who was her Doctor but was not; and a life that had been but was no more; all of this floated around in her mind, daring her to believe in a moment that it was nothing more than a dream.

Then she had met _him_ and things changed. Suddenly, she was not so certain she was dreaming. No, the déjà vu she had felt upon meeting the Doctor's Ganger made that clear. Idris had warned her, back in that small cell on "The House." She had looked so sad as she whispered, "My Heart struggles with two times unwritten; two thieves taken." Rose had not understood then. She understood now.

The warmth of the TARDIS was her guide through her non-dreams—a clear connection revealed after Idris faded back into the wonderful machine that took them not where they wanted to go but to where they were needed. She guided the Bad Wolf down pathways of time, from past to past and future to future. Rose watched civilizations rise and civilizations fall; she saw peoples that could have been but were not; and she saw so many futures.

Yet, those words, "Of Blood and Battle," called her to a past, _her_ past, and she could not fight the pull, though, oh, how she wanted to. The words would not be denied. She would see what she needed to see. Thus, she found herself once more at the beginning, where the crossroads of memory emerged; the underground fortress, amidst a war of Humans and Gangers, she had stolen a conversation that would change everything.

"You don't need to be him," she said.

The Doctor's Ganger turned from his search, a curious brow quirked. "Pardon?"

"The Doctor," Rose continued. She felt that it was important for him to understand. She did not know why. "Just because you were born of him does not mean you have to be him."

"Rose, I am him."

She smiled and shook her head, feeling like she had had this conversation before. He had been just as stubborn then. _Who had?_ she wondered. But now was not the time for distractions. They were in a hurry. She needed to finish this quickly. "You only think that because you have his memories. But, you don't _have_ to be him. You are you. You have the right to be _you_."

The Ganger looked at her with an all too familiar gaze—one that never changed regardless of his regenerations. Something in her words had intrigued him; he was figuring it out. Rose smiled, thinking she had gotten through, when he spoke these curious words, "Is that what you told him?"

The memory faded. She was pulled forward, mere hours later, at the crux of the battle. Amy was crying as Rory and Jack pulled her away from the Doctor's Ganger. Her cries of denial echoed off the walls. She refused to let him die. Rose locked eyes with the Doctor, the _real_ Doctor; an understanding passed between them. He led the others to the TARDIS. Rose turned back to the Ganger. They had but a moment. She simply wanted to say thank you.

Then he hugged her—a sensation both startling and welcome; she and the Doctor had not rekindled their need to touch—and whispered, "I meant what he said on Bad Wolf Bay."

The memories blurred and mixed. The tunnel; Bad Wolf Bay.

"Of Blood and Battle."

The Ganger; two Doctors.

"Of blood and battle."

Three words, whispered. By who?

"…of blood and battle."

"Awaken, My Heart."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Rose emerged from her time sleep, her head clouded; it was an aftereffect of merging with the TARDIS. Her mind was bleeding. The connection had been severed to swiftly, something Idris would not have done unless it was important. The golden warmth of the TARDIS immediately wrapped around her psyche, bandaging the wound and once more establishing a protection that no high-level alien could penetrate. It was a protection first given after that day at Greystark Hall. The TARDIS had cloaked her soul the moment Jack carried her body into the safety of the Blue Box. Now, it was the seal of their bond. The damage done by the Time Vortex was now an open door between her and Idris. After all, she was the Heart of the TARDIS.

"_The pretty one comes,"_ TARDIS whispered to her. _"He brings news."_

Rose sat up and reached for her jacket, pulling it on over her tank top right as Rory knocked on her door. "Come in," Rose called as she dragged her boots over to the bed. Months back, yet she still dressed in combat clothes. They were comfortable; familiar; and now, necessary.

Rory cracked the door. "He's back," was all he said. It was all he needed to say. Rose finished lacing up her boots, pulled her hair back, and followed her companion to the consul room.

Jack was waiting for them. A sight for sore eyes; he had been gone on reconnaissance of Demon's Run for a month. It was a dangerous mission, one that had Rose, especially, on edge. But her dear friend was returned safely. She would have to thank Captain Avery for that when she saw him next. She assumed that would be soon if the looks on both Jack and the Doctor's faces were any indication of what had been found and what would happen next because of it. Still, Rose could not help her actions. She looped her arms around Jack's neck and held on for a moment, grateful for his return.

"Enough hugging," the Doctor grumbled from the consul. "We have work to do. Jack, what did you find?"

Jack frowned at the Doctor's curt tone but did not challenge it. The Doctor was not to be questioned, not now. The immortal soldier pulled up an image of Demon's Run on the monitor. "Demon's Run is a base built within an asteroid. Seclusion is their greatest defense. No one knows where they are. Well," He cracked a smirk. "Almost no one. Their fleet remains within sonic jump range. Should the base fall under attack, they will be there within minutes."

"Not if they can't hear a call for help," the Doctor mused.

"Yes, but," Jack typed in a few commands. The outer image transformed into a schematic. "The communication system has several backups; here, here, and here. And the computer is smart enough that any attempt to stop a signal before it is sent would fail. We will need to knock out the transmitters."

"I know who can help with that," the Doctor said.

"What about Amy?" Rory asked.

Jack pulled up a new file. The schematic disappeared, making room for a stolen security feed. Rory's breath caught in his throat as he saw his wife holding their baby. From somewhere beyond his shocked mind, Jack said, "Congratulations. You're a father."

Tears pricked in Rory's eyes. He quickly scrubbed them away, knowing that now was not the time, but they just would not stop!

Rose felt for him. No father, no matter how strong, could stop crying upon the birth of their child. John had been so excited when she told him they were expecting.

_John?_ Rose blinked, confused at the memory. _Who's John? _Her hands folded over her lower stomach. The moment passed, and Jack was speaking again. "This feed was taken three days ago. I have learned since that the baby has since been removed from Amy's care."

"What?" Rory was looking at Jack with growing anger. "Where did they take him?"

"Her," Jack corrected. "And, I am uncertain. My source was unable to ascertain a location; however, the child is still in the base."

"Is this a reliable source?" the Doctor questioned suspiciously. He had not been told about a source.

"She is," Jack replied but said no more.

"I don't understand," Rory said. "They stole Amy and now our baby. Why?"

"That's what we're going to find out. But first," The Doctor pulled a lever. The TARDIS whined and whirled, and they were off into the vortex.

"Where are we going?" Jack demanded.

"To rescue Amy!" the Doctor declared.

"Just the four of us?" Rory asked, torn between skepticism and exhilaration. He was going to save his wife.

_Why not?_ Rose wanted to say. The Doctor had once charged an entire Dalek fleet with just he and Jack in the TARDIS to save her. Surely, the four of them were more than enough to take Amy and her daughter back.

"Of course not!" the Doctor said.

"Wait, what?" Rose questioned.

The Doctor grinned at her, a grin she had not seen on his face since…since…since she had first met him in a basement once upon a time. Dread pierced her heart at the sight, and those words danced through her mind. _Of blood and battle. _The Doctor twisted a crank and nearly laughed as he announced, "We are getting reinforcements."

The TARDIS landed with a thud.

The Doctor turned to the door, but Rose barred his way. "What are you doing?"

"You can't invade an army base without proper numbers, can you, Rose?" He stepped around her. "I am simply evening the score."

Rose twisted, grabbing his arm. "You can't do that!"

The Doctor stilled beneath her grip. The air frosted over as his words sliced through the silence. "Oh?" He turned around. There was a darkness in his eyes, the depth of which Rose had never seen. "What can't I do?"

Rose stood her ground. Darkness or not, this was still the Doctor. She had faced his demons before. She was not afraid. "Raise an army. You're the Doctor. You don't raise armies."

Something flashed in his eyes, something almost cruel. "You're Rose Tyler. You do not keep secrets from me. But that's happen twice now, hasn't it?"

It was an unfair jab, drudging up the image of Amy disappearing into a splash of flesh and the painful recognition that her suspicions—no, her _vision_—of the future had been correct. Rose could feel the mask of Commander Tyler surfacing. She had donned that persona less and less over the last few months; subconsciously shifting it further and further back into her mind yet keeping it within reach, least she need protection. Now, she could feel its edges in her eyes. She steeled her voice against weakness and called his bluff. "I could not tell you about a fixed event no more than we could have prevented it. And you know that." The Doctor scowled and made to turn away, but Rose was not finished. "But you can stop this! This, Doctor, is not fixed. You do not have to do this."

The Doctor's dark eyes dipped in contemplation of her passionate plea. "Perhaps," he whispered, so softly that Rose knew it was not a revelation for mortal ears. "If I had done this sooner, those I love would not be put in danger." He slipped from her grip; she willingly released him; and walked to the door, set on his path. "I am going to make a statement, Rose, one that will resound across all of time and space." He placed his hand on the TARDIS door and looked back. "No one takes what is mine."

Rose played her hand without thinking, desperate to stop the future she saw unfolding before her eyes; a future where the name "The Doctor" sparked fear across the stars. She would not let him become a dark warrior. The TARDIS door locked, the time rotor hummed, and the magical ship launched itself into the vortex once more.

The Doctor looked up in surprise and then wonder. No one was at the controls. Jack and Rory were equally as startled. All eyes were on the golden-haired Bad Wolf. She stood, her brown eyes locked with the Doctor's, and her hand outstretched to the consul. She had commanded the TARDIS to action; the ship had obeyed.

"Let me do it." It was a request, a command, and a plea. Rose stood straight and tall, the mask of Commander in place. "I will gather your army. I will lead them into battle. But not you. Never you."

Shocked out of his anger, the Doctor could only stutter, "Why?"

Rose smiled through her mask, "Because the Doctor does not gather an army, but Commander Tyler does."

**AN: Teehee.**


	3. An Army Gathered

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Three: An Army Gathered

"Did you know she could do that?" It was the question on everyone's mind, yet Rory, who began this journey as a nurse barely able to defend his ground and now stood as an equal in an unstoppable force, was the sole being that held the courage to ask.

"What?" Jack replied. He looked across the hanger to the TARDIS. Through the open door, he could see Rose leaning over the consul, her arms spread, her hands gripping the edges in support of her weight, and her eyes fixed on the central column. She looked to be having a very serious conversation with the ancient machine. "Control the TARDIS with her mind? No, I didn't." The immortal captain turned his gaze to the Doctor. "And neither did he."

The tweed-wearing Time Lord was angrily pacing the length of Captain Avery's hanger, his dark eyes reflective of his war-born title. He had not said a word since their arrival at _Rose's command._ Even he was having trouble processing this one. Of all the things he had seen in his not insignificantly long life, he would never, not once, ever think that he would see the day when Rose Tyler could do, well, _that_! The Doctor stopped pacing in front of his two remaining companions. "She's talking," he nearly snarled. "Amy's life _and_ the life of her child are in the balance, and _Rose Tyler_ is having a nice long chat. With _my_ TARDIS!"

"Jealousy does not become you," Jack tsked, causing Rory to crack a smile despite the serious predicament within which they currently found themselves.

"This is not a time for jokes!" The Doctor snapped. "She is talking to _my TARDIS_! And she kept this from me! She is worse than River Song!" He launched back into his pacing.

Jack grinned to himself but let the matter rest.

The doors to the hanger bay whooshed open, allowing Captain Henry Avery, their host and ally in this battle against Demon's Run, and his son, Toby, entrance. The old sea captain turned space pirate cast a precarious glance at the brooding time traveler.

"Don't worry," Jack said, standing to greet him. "He'll be alright. Just don't let him touch anything. Might blow up the ship."

"I heard that," the Doctor snapped.

Captain Avery nodded. He peered at the TARDIS. The mysterious blue box still caused him to pause; its secrets were too great for his understanding. Even now they deepened, taking the fair Commander Tyler down with them. Captain Avery knew a dispute of authority when he saw one; the tension in the air between the Doctor and Commander Tyler spoke very much of that. Thus, he would address his questions to the one whom he had aided most: Captain Jack "What is the plan, sir?"

Jack reclaimed his vigilance of Rose, worry hidden well in his eyes. "I'm not sure."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

"Who do I need?" Rose whispered her thoughts. The Doctor wanted to raise an army. She had played her hand to stop him. Now, she was to be his general. She had given her word. She would rally his forces and lead the charge. Such a precarious situation; one that treaded the line between light and dark, good and bad, and one slip up plummeted them all into a future of tyranny and fear. She could not let that happen. "Please, TARDIS. What do I do? Who do I bring back?"

Warmth swirled through her. _"You already know, My Heart. Some are chosen, not by you or he but by Time itself. Others are shuffled. Yet, the outcome remains the same. "_

Rose dropped her head. "The future is unclear," she said in defiance, in fear, and in hope. She did not know of the outcome for which Idris hinted, but that did nothing to quell the dread in her heart. Demon's Run was turning into a cacophony of fixed points and fluid moments; of fated destiny and chosen pathways. It jumbled together in her mind. She could not make sense of any of it. One future was full of Silurians and Judoons led by a Sontaran. Another was of her and Jack leading a small band of faceless fighters into a secret assault without the Doctor's consent. Still another saw her standing in the TARDIS with her mother and Jack and the Children of Time, flying away victorious. _No,_ she corrected herself. _That's the past._ A past. One that never happened.

_"None will know the true future," _Idris said. _"Only what one needs in order to avoid danger. You know what you need, My Heart. It has all been set in motion. Follow the paths of past and future born of blood and battle."_

"What?" Rose's head came up. Those words again. "What do they mean? Idris!"

The TARDIS was silent. The conversation was over. Rose stood and inhaled slowly. The cool air washed through her and out of her, releasing the fear and opening the doors for confidence. She had an army to find and a battle for which to prepare. She was ready.

The pillars of her force stood ready for her command. Rory, Captain Avery and Toby, Jack; and, behind them all, watching and waiting, uncertain of the future for which she would lead him, the Doctor; they were all anxious to get started. She would not disappoint. "Jack, we have some old friends to find."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The sirens were blaring loud enough to drown out the storm raging outside. _Well,_ River thought as she sashayed down the soulless corridor, _it's not called Stormcage for nothing._ The mightiest high-security prison in all the universes; yet, it could not keep her and her lover apart. She could not stop smiling. It was her birthday today; Jack had taken her to Valtres X, a planet where anyone's wildest dream could come true—for the right price. What happened next, well…her smile broadened. What happened at Valtres X stayed at Valtres X.

She swooped the communicator from its box on the wall and sing-songed into the receiver, "Oh, turn those noisy gongs off. I'm breaking in, not breaking out. This is River Song back in her cell. I'll take my breakfast at the usual time, thank you."

"Are you always this polite to your captors?"

River turned around, crying out in delight, "Jack!"

Jack stepped out of the shadows. "River," he greeted. He drank her in; he had not seen her since their parting at this same spot. Her kiss was like phantom fire on her lips. However, he did not approach, not yet. She and he were the same; they were time travelers. He did not know where or when she was in regards to…

"Oh, come here!" And she was kissing him.

Jack smirked as he pulled back. "Are you cheating on me with me?"

"Yes," River purred.

"Bad girl." He kissed her.

"So, Sweetie, what do I owe the pleasure?" She sauntered to her open cell door and turned, asking coyly, "Are you repeating my secret surprise from last birthday?"

"Secret birthday surprise?" Jack asked, interested in the hints as to what he had to look forward to in their future.

River's grin turned cat-like. "Spoilers."

Jack sighed heavily. "I came because I need your help. The Silence has Amy."

River stopped cold in her cell.

"Rose is gathering an army for the Doctor."

"I know," River said, cutting him off. She had her diary in her hands. It was open to a page near the middle. A deep sadness filled her beautiful eyes as she read the contents. "Demon's Run." She sighed heavily. "Is it really now?"

"So, you know what's going on?" Jack walked up to her cell.

"Yes." River turned to face him. "And I can't help. Not this time."

"What?"

River cupped his face, silencing his protest with a stroke of her thumb. "You have to trust me. Demon's Run is a fixed point where the Doctor will rise his highest and fall further still, and only his heart will overcome_ if_ she is willing. Please. Keep them willing."

"I don't understand," Jack said as he covered her hand with his.

River's heart broke in her words, "You will soon."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

"Have you ever heard the legend of Demon's Run?" Dorium asked.

It was late on Maldovarium, and Dorium had already had a bad day. He was not in the mood to receive his final guests. He wanted to end this meeting swiftly. Still, he could not help the twinge of pleasure he got at seeing the tendrils of uncertainty dancing behind the arrogance of his particular visitors.

Madam Kovarian sneered at his question. "What of it?"

Dorium let his smile grow. He leaned back in his plush cushion and folded his hands, content in his knowledge. He knew everything there was to know, after all, and what was the use of that knowledge if he could not exploit, taunt, and belittle with it? "Demon's Run when a Good Man goes to war," he informed them. "You have crossed the Doctor. You are not the first, and you will not be the last; does the name Davros ring a bell? Or The Beast of the Abyss? Or the Master?"

"Fairytales," scoffed Colonel Manton. The imposing leader of the Army of Her Holiness was a man carved of dark stone with a heart of iron. He did not fear children's stories. He said as much.

"You should fear these," Dorium warned. "No one crosses the Doctor and lives to tell the tale."

"The Doctor doesn't kill people," Kovarian said with a laugh.

Dorium's grin twisted. "He doesn't have to. He has others to do it for him. The Children of Time were the first and most famous until now. Now, we have something worse. The Face of Boe. The Bad Wolf. The Last Centurion. What do you expect to do when they arrive flanked by the thousands who owe that man a favor."

"It's been six months," Manton countered. "Nothing has happened. They do not know where we are. No one does." The dark colonel leaned forward. "We are here to make sure of that."

Dorium laughed outright at his threat. "You are a fool if you think the Doctor does not know where you are. Six months means nothing. You should be more afraid of his lack of action. It means he is planning. One hour of planning took down the Dalek Empire. Six months is more than enough to take on your pitiful little asteroid. I suggest you run, because he is most certainly chasing you."

Manton made to lunge at the fat blue alien, but Kovarian's hand stopped him. "We're done here." she said. "Beware, Dorium. You may feel your contracts protect you, but there is no protection from The Silence." With that, she led the fuming Colonel Manton from the bar.

Dorium deflated, glad that was over. He wanted to go home, drink a warm brandy, and sleep off this bad day. He rolled his massive frame up onto his stubby legs, stretched, and turned for the back entrance.

The barrel of a gun greeted him. "Sit down, Dorium."

Dorium obeyed. "So," he gulped. "He sends the Bad Wolf to fetch me?"

Rose sat in Kovarian's abandoned chair and kicked her boots up onto the table, her pistol pointed directly at him. A Sontaran and a black-skinned human took guard positions on each side of the underworld king-pin. Fear gripped Dorium's spine at the sight of them. Sontarans only obeyed their own kind. And the human—Dorium had never seen him in person, but he knew him by reputation. What's more, he knew this man's descendants. He gulped again, all signs of the cocky peddler gone, leaving the coward he was exposed. "Please," he begged. "The Doctor can't need me."

Rose smirked. "He does." She let her words hang for an eternal moment; then, she lowered her gun and leaned back in her chair. "But I don't."

"Thank you," Dorium sputtered in a rush of relief. "Thank you. Thank you."

"Shut up," Rose growled.

He closed his gob.

"I am saving your life, though you do not know it, and my mercy comes with a price."

"Anything."

"The pass codes to Demon's Run."

Dorium's completion paled into a pleasant sky blue.

Rose sat up, her pistol aimed true again. "You designed the security grid, the computer system, the whole shebang. Give me the pass codes. Or, my cranky friend, Strax,"

"_Commander_ Strax!" the Sontaran corrected.

Rose waved it off. "Whatever. Strax will lead you into the TARDIS, where we will fly you off to Demon's Run, and you can enter the codes yourself. Which will it be?"

Future generations would later tell the tales of the day the Bad Wolf invaded Maldovarium with an army of thousands, conquered the fortress of Lord Dorium the Great, and stole the secrets of the Universe; it was a tale Dorium himself would start. It would be the tale that would save his life. Because no one would let him live if they ever found out that he willingly handed over the codes to the enemies of the Silence for no other reason than the hopes of being left out of it.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The new _Fancy_ was getting crowded. Though a massive ship compared to his old vessel, Captain Avery had since learned that his ship was rather small; sleeker, built for speed and long distance travel and not as a staging point for an invasion. Three planes from earth's future sat wingtip to wingtip, taking up the majority of room left in the hanger. What was left was taken up by the small band of soldiers brought back by Jack. The Doctor had been happy to see this particular group and had been spending the time since their arrival in explanation. Avery understood the lads' confusion. It had taken he and his men some time to comprehend the world with which they were now a part.

Rory, the anxious lad turned courageous soldier, was in conference with Captain Jack. Both were waiting for the return of Commander Tyler. She would be bringing the last of their army. Avery frowned in thought. This army was rather small.

A rush of wind preceded the familiar sound of the time rotor, signaling the return of the TARDIS. The band of soldiers gathered together to watch the box materialize; the Doctor at the head. Once his beloved ship solidified, he threw open the door but stopped at the unexpected sight. "What are you doing here?"

"Hello to you to, Doctor," Mickey Smith greeted. He pushed past the flabbergasted time traveler to meet a more familiar face. "Jack!"

"Mickey?" Jack clasped Mickey's offered hand and pulled the young man into a firm embrace. "I should have known!"

"Known what?" the Doctor demanded. "How do you know what is going on and I don't?"

"Doctor." Commander Strax's curt greeting preceded his salute. "I look forward to completing my pence and then slaughtering you in glorious battle to come."

"Right, right, slaughter and glory, Rose Tyler! What have you done?"

Rose side-stepped the Doctor and entered the hanger. "I got you an army."

"Three pilots and a Sontaran is _not_ an army!"

"Mickey's here."

The Doctor shot the grinning young man a look that spoke volumes of his opinion on that little change in plans. He chased after Rose's retreating form, not finished with her. "Where are the Judoon? And the Silurians?"

"You don't need them," Rose replied.

"I need an army. You said you were going to bring one," the Doctor reminded her.

"I did," Rose answered, distracted. She was looking around the room, not paying one iota of attention to his complaints.

The Doctor hated it when the subject of his dialogue ignored him. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?" She furrowed her brow. Something wasn't right.

"Changing my plans!"

"I improved them, that's all."

Neither the Doctor nor Rose noticed that they had an audience consisting of two grinning fools and one slightly put-out centurion. "Some things don't change," Mickey said with a shake of his head. "Never thought I'd miss seeing this."

"Them arguing?" Rory asked in surprise.

Mickey smirked. "Ten years of Commander Tyler; yes, I'm glad to see them argue."

"Why must you keep doing this?" the Doctor was saying. "Showing up when you aren't supposed to, changing my plans, changing time and futures!"

Rose halted and spun around, her full attention finally on him. "What do you mean by that?"

Something in the Doctor's expression indicated that he had said too much and regretted letting that hint of his own secrets out.

Rose's countenance fell for just a moment as she asked, "Did you prefer the future that kept us separated?"

Silence fell between them, a silence that said so many things and denied so much more. It was a silence they did not have time to face. "Jack!"

Jack jumped at the sudden focus of her heated gaze upon his person. "Yes, Commander?"

"Where's River?"

Jack looked at Rory for support. The young man just shrugged. Jack frowned and steeled himself for the worst. "She's not coming."

"What?" Both Rose and the Doctor exclaimed.

"Unbelievable," Rose groaned.

"That woman," the Doctor grumbled, his mood darkening all the more. "She summons me across time and space without regard for what I have planned, but does she come to help save Amy? No!"

Jack narrowed his eyes. "She had a reason."

"She always does. Where are _you _going?"

Rose was pushing past Jack and Mickey, stalking back to the TARDIS with an irritated fire in her eyes. "I have to go get the bloody Judoon!" The TARDIS door slammed behind her, and a moment later, it was gone.

The Doctor scowled. Everything was falling out of his control. He _hated_ that. "What are you grinning at, _Rickey_."

Mickey did not take the bait. He just continued to smile.

"What are you doing here anyway?" the Doctor demanded. "And where's Martha? Last I left you two, you were hunting Sontarans. I doubt she would have let you come alone."

The smirk on Mickey's face grew. "Why don't you ask Jack." He turned to his very old friend. "What do you say, Captain? Do _you_ know where my wife is?"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Martha kept her head up and her eyes forward, projecting an air of confidence and belonging. She was a Medical Officer in the service of Her Holiness. She belonged here in a base built in an asteroid millions of years into the future and light years away from her husband acting as a spy to the army amassing somewhere in the dark reaches beyond. Just another day in her not so normal life.

She saluted the guards, flashed her credentials, and waited as they opened the door for her. She stepped into the bright white room imprisoning one Amelia Pond, companion to the Doctor. "Leave us," she ordered the soldiers.

The soldiers did as told. It was a private examination, and Officer Jones was a trusted associate.

The door closed and locked behind them.

Martha looked behind her, took a deep breath, and approached. Amy was standing by the bay window, silent. That was not a good sign. "How are you feeling today, Miss Pond?"

"_Mrs._," Amy corrected. "And like you care."

"Her Holiness cares for all God's chil—"

"Shut up!" Amy turned, fury in her eyes. "If that computer gives a damn about anyone, why did she take my baby from me?" Tears glistened in her eyes. "Don't you dare pretend that any of this matters. None of you will get away with this. You hear me! The Doctor is coming! He promised!" The heat left her words as she turned back to the window. "Rory promised."

Martha double checked her surroundings. She knew that they were listening. There were cameras everywhere. But, it was a risk she was willing to take. Stepping up next to the crying prisoner, Martha pulled something from her pocket and placed it secretly in Amy's hands. "I know," she whispered.

Amy looked at the gift in shock. It was a TARDIS key. She met Martha's eyes, confused. The Medical Officer smiled. "The Doctor _is_ coming." She closed Amy's fingers around the key. "I promise."


	4. A Memory Won and Lost

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Four: A Memory Won and Lost

**Three Years Ago, Earth:**

Martha closed her eyes against the tears she felt rising. She had sworn to herself long ago to never cry over the Doctor again, and yet, and yet…She breathed in shakily, trying to compose herself. It was just so damn easy. She had not seen him since the Medusa Cascade. And then, suddenly, there he was again, swooping in to save their lives. _But…_ She looked up at the abandoned balcony of the industrial factory that had, only moments ago, been the battle ground between them and the rogue Sontaran. _But something is different._

"He was saying goodbye," Mickey, her beloved husband, voiced what she feared most in her heart. The Doctor never said goodbye. He always left the option open in case he ever wanted to return. It was an option he would never take; it was an option she hoped he would. But not like this. Never like this. Not a goodbye. Goodbye meant goodbye; a closed door; an ending. She would never see him again; what was worse, there was no longer the hope of seeing him again. And that was why she could not stop the tears from rising in her dark eyes.

Then, they heard it—that beautiful, _unbelievable _sound.

"It can't be," Mickey muttered as he pulled away. "He just left." He looked about. "He said goodbye." Then, to his wife, he asked, "Right?"

Martha did not want to answer. She was battling the mix of despair and hope. They had heard the TARDIS leave. Now it was back. She did not care what that meant.

Wind whipped up around them, disturbed by the displacement of temporal energy. The married mercenaries clung to each other again and watched and waited for the fantastic conclusion to this baffling course of events.

And there it was; that magical blue box that had changed both their lives for the better. Martha broke from her husband, running as fast as she could across the open yard; Mickey was close behind. The door opened before they could reach it, and outstepped the one being they had not expected.

"I can't believe it!" Mickey breathed in the same breath as his wife's confession of "I don't understand."

Rose Tyler reached her hand out from within the TARDIS and asked, "Will you come with me?"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

**Present Day, TARDIS:**

Mickey circled the unfamiliar TARDIS consul, whistling low, impressed. He had not had the time to properly admire the time machines new look after Commander Tyler whisked them away into another grand adventure.

"Bit different from our day," Jack said, joining him.

"Yeah. She's nice." He ran his ran over the controls. "Much nicer."

"What are you insinuating?" The Doctor popped his head around the consul; a new face with an old scowl. "You weren't in my TARDIS long enough to judge her. Stop touching thing! You're not supposed to be here anyway."

"Rose said you needed help," Mickey replied with a shrug.

"Help. Yes. _New _help, not old help! I left you and Martha in the right proper place, away from all of this."

Mickey resisted the urge to chuckle. This new Doctor was more manic than the last and almost as grouchy as the first. The old companion did not know what to think about all that. Thus, he chose to shrug again and add a mild shake of his head. "My commander called, and I obeyed. Simple as that."

"Your commander," the Doctor growled. "She was never supposed to be that. _You,_" he pointed an accusing finger at Mickey. "Should not have let that happen."

That cut through the amusement to sting something dark. Anger shot through Mickey's eyes, an anger that would have, once upon a time, made him react in a less cool manner. However, that young boy had grown up and knew how to handle pouty old aliens. "Perhaps you should not have let her go."

Old Doctor would have let that go. Old Doctor would have brushed past the comment or replied with a snide remark that ended with him being called "idiot" or "Rickey." New Doctor did neither. New Doctor charged around the consul to face him, toe to toe, and growled, "I did _everything_ I could to protect her."

Mickey raised a single eyebrow. "But it wasn't enough, was it, Doctor?"

The sizzle of rage diminished; evident in the sudden lax of the Doctor's shoulders. "No," he confessed in another act unlike any other Doctor Mickey knew. The raggedy Time Lord turned away, whispering in finality, "It never is."

Mickey was caught off guard by this new, emotional version. This conversation had equated the most truth he ever pulled from that man. It was both enlightening and strange. He decided to seek the familiar to center his thoughts. Looking to Jack, he asked, "Where's Rose?"

Jack grinned. "Talking to the TARDIS."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Rose stood in her sanctuary. It was her place to focus, to relax; it was where her connection to the TARDIS was at its most powerful. She ran her fingers over the familiar consul, letting the memories of happier times fill her, if only for a few moments, with peace. So much laughter; so much pain; so much wonderful life; all born in this room.

She had not believed it when she first saw it. The shock, surprise, and elation all had to be sorted after the fact; battling The House took priority. But, late into the night, after all had gone to bed and the Doctor had buried himself in tinkering in order to escape the pain of losing Idris, Rose had found her way back here, to _her_ TARDIS. Her TARDIS, where she and the Doctor had escaped the Nesteen Mickey, travelled to the end of the earth, and saved her father; where she brought Adam and Mickey and Jack. Her fingers traced the scar in the consul paneling. Where she had defied impossibility by ripping open this beautiful machine and drinking in her heart in order to save her Doctor. This was her TARDIS. This was her home.

The door opened behind her.

"Well, this is more like it." Mickey walked in, hands tucked away in the pockets of his leather jacket and his combat boots beating against the grating with each step. He took a deep breath and exhaled over dramatically before smiling. "Yes. Much better. Hello, Rose."

"I haven't heard you call me "Rose" in…" she trailed off in thought.

"Eight years, three months, and seventeen days," Mickey supplied as he completed is trek up the ramp to her side. "But who's counting."

"Eight years?" Rose questioned. It was her attempt to make light a serious question she was uncertain she wanted to ask. So much time had passed; for _both_ of them.

"Three years here," Mickey said. "Five years, three months, and seventeen days there." He turned and leaned back against the consul and crossed his arms. "That was the last time I saw _Rose_ Tyler."

Rose mimicked his stance and looked up at the dark ceiling. "A lot has changed," she confessed.

"Yeah," Mickey replied. Then, he fixed her with a firm look. "But not everything."

Commander Tyler would not have been affected. But she was not Commander Tyler now.

Rose hugged him. "I'm so glad you're here."

He returned the hug. "Me too."

They held onto each other for a long while, saying all that needed to be said in that one gesture. Though time and space had parted them, they would still be the best of friends. He had meant what he said to the Doctor. Rose had needed him. That was why he was here. He had stood by her side for ten years in Pete's world. No amount of temporal anomalies could change that type of loyalty.

"I can't believe you made it through," Rose said, pulling away.

"Me? What about you?" Mickey sat in one of the Captain's Chairs. "How are you even here?"

"After you went through, we didn't hear anything for two weeks. Then the crack began to destabilize. I wasn't about to leave you out there alone." Rose watched him assimilate that news. His smile never left his face, a face that had changed. There were laugh lines now where there had once been grooves etched by continual frowns. And he looked years younger than he should. "Did the temporal energy do that?" she asked, pointing to his face.

"What? Oh," He stroked his goatee. "Yeah. Left looking old; arrived looking young. Couldn't explain it. Didn't try. Helped me win Martha."

"I'm so happy for you," Rose said with true sincerity.

"Thank you. Had I known you were here, I would have invited you to the wedding."

Rose looked away to hide the guilt in her eyes. "I didn't know if you were alive or dead," she said. "And then, when I found you, you had moved on with your life." She looked up at her oldest friend. "I didn't want to intrude."

Mickey leaned forward. "You are never an intrusion." Rose smiled her thanks but did not reply, resulting in the fall of an uncomfortable silence. "So," Mickey clapped his hands and sat back. "You're talking to the TARDIS, eh? Is that a result of the cracks?"

"Yes and no," Rose said, pushing off of the consul to circle the steam punk wonder, her fingers trailing behind her. "My jump through time reenergized and super accelerated the lingering few particles of the time vortex energy left in my system from, well, you know."

"I thought the Doctor got all that."

"So did I," Rose said from across the room, her eyes growing dark with memory. That had been a rough day, to say the least. Perhaps it was her past weaknesses resurfacing from her time spent in the old consul room; perhaps she was just growing soft; regardless, she let the feeling of longing rise in her heart. She wanted her Doctor, big ears and leather clad, so badly.

_"I meant what he said on Bad Wolf Bay."_

Rose shook the memory of the Ganger from her mind. Now was not the time. She turned back to her friend. "We were wrong. Wouldn't be the first time."

"True." He kicked his feet up on the consul. If they squinted and tilted their heads, allowing imagination to rule, they could pretend that this was like old times. "We were told we'd never make it back, but, here we are." He laced his fingers behind his head. "Did you ever figure out what caused those cracks?" Rose shook her head negatively. "Really? Doctor never told you?"

"No," Rose said. "Though, I am sure he was in the center of it."

"Of course he was." Mickey stood up and joined her again, resuming his casual lean against the coral. "I saw him, you know. Twice." She did not need to ask; he did not need to clarify. "First was when I arrived. I landed in the middle of a Dalek war."

That made Rose smile. "Really?"

"Yeah," Mickey said with a laugh. "They were stealing planets and such, trying to destroy all realities. You'd think a machine like that would have torn down the walls between dimensions."

Déjà vu washed through Rose. Memories; possibilities; pasts and futures; jumbles of tangled timelines filled her mind's eyes. She pushed against it, not wanting to get lost, not now, but the TARDIS was persistent. Rose closed her eyes in concentration, pleading with the ancient machine; outside herself, she heard her mechanical response of "You'd think."

She saw the earth in chaos. Daleks filled the air; people ran through the streets in fear; those who understood took up arms to retaliate; and in the midst of all of that, she had…

"Thankfully, they never did. Didn't get far enough."

His words pierced the vision. She grasped onto the sound of his voice to pull her out.

"It's odd, really," Mickey had his arms folded and was looking at the grating in thought. "I don't know how we did it. One minute, I'm with the Doctor, surrounded by Daleks, about to get caught, the next…I don't know. Everything went kind of wonky for a minute, and then, poof! We were destroying the fleet and escaping in the TARDIS."

She searched the knot of timelines to find his past. It glowed as he focused on it, trying to remember. There were holes in the timeline, but it was intact and strong and would continue on with the protection of a fixed point. Rose connected to it, followed it, and breathed deep her relief as it led her back into reality. The TARDIS was not pleased, but she let the result stand. Rose knew Idris would try again.

"Rose?" Mickey's face dominated her vision. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Caught between time and reality, Rose looked up at him and whispered, "Time. Time is wrong."

"What do you mean?" Mickey was now on alert and ready.

"The cracks messed up time," Rose said, moving away from him and his concern. "I am not certain yet how."

"Will that change anything?"

Rose could hear the worry in his voice; worry for all that he had gained in this new time. Her dear friend; he had truly grown. She turned to face him. "Not for you," she assured him. "Your timeline is already written into the fate of this universe. Nothing can change that."

He was relieved; it was evident; but that relief disappeared in the light of a new thought. "What about you?"

Rose tried to smile, tried to continue her reassurance, but it faltered as doubt shown in her eyes. So many things were happening; fate and destiny were colliding over Demon's Run, and yet, the TARDIS was pulling her into forgotten pasts. _"Follow the paths of past and future born of blood and battle,"_ she had said. Rose feared where those paths would lead or, what's more, what they would mean. She did not reach for her old friend, but she did plead in silence for his wisdom. She wanted to hear an answer that no one could give her. Thus, she settled for a simple shrug followed by her whispered confession. "I don't know."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Lorna Bucket shuffled down the hall toward Amelia Pond's prison. She was supposed to be gathered with the rest of the soldiers in the hanger bay for Colonel Manton's address. But this was the only time she could see the prisoner without getting caught. The Doctor would do the same. It was that thought that gave her the courage to defy her superiors in order to give some hope to the hopeless.

She halted at the cell door. "I wish to see the prisoner."

The guard—a private first class recently elevated from novice status and currently doing the grunge work—nodded and typed in the pass code that would open the door.

Lorna saluted him and marched in, the door whooshing shut behind her. She halted at the top of the stairs. "Oh! Officer Jones!"

Officer Jones turned from the window where she was standing with the prisoner. "Bucket," she acknowledged. "This is a private examination."

"My apologies, ma'am. I just wanted to…"

"To?" Officer Jones probed.

Lorna swallowed. _Be strong_, she told herself. _Like the Doctor._ She reached into her pocket. "I just wanted to give the prisoner something."

"The _prisoner_ doesn't want anything from you," Amelia hissed over her shoulder.

Lorna pulled back a bit at the anger in the woman's words. She could not blame her. They had stolen her from her husband, locked her away for over a year, and then took her child. Amelia Pond had every right to be angry. "Please," she said softly. "It will help."

Jones placed a hand on Amy's shoulder, stopping the retort that was obviously rising. The Medical Officer stepped up to the younger soldier. "Let me have it. I will give it to her."

Lorna smiled her thanks. "It is a prayer leaf," she explained as she handed the embroidered cloth to her superior. "It is a tradition of my people. If a loved one is lost, we write their name on the leaf; though, in the language of the forest, there is no word for Pond. I had to improvise a little."

"I am sure it is fine. Thank you, Bucket."

"Ma'am." Lorna saluted her.

Officer Jones returned the salute. "Now, get to the hanger bay before you get into trouble."

Lorna did as ordered, proud of herself for a mission accomplished. One day, she would tell the Doctor about how she helped his captive companion. _One day._

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Martha turned back to Amy once Lorna was gone. "Here."

Amy glared at the cloth leaf as if it were the architect of her fate. "I don't want it."

"Take it," Martha said. "It is a gift meant to bring comfort."

"What comfort?" Amy asked. "A piece of cloth in exchange for my baby girl? Not a fair trade!"

Like she had done with the TARDIS key, Martha placed the leaf in Amy's hands and gently forced her to keep hold of it. "It is a prayer for her safe return. And, up against _that_, we will need all the prayer we can get." Martha placed her hand on the window overlooking the hanger. It was filled with soldiers, lined up and ready, waiting for one man: The Doctor.

"He _is_ coming," Amy whispered, tearing her gaze away from the army. "Right, Martha?"

Martha did not let the fear seep into her voice. "Yes. And God help those poor souls down there when he does."

Below, the soldiers raised their voices in a chant, vowing the death of the Doctor.

Martha closed her eyes.

It would all begin soon.

**A.N.: Yes, it will. Next chapter, the Battle of Demon's Run begins! I promise Rory is still alive somewhere. I will bring him back, promise. **


	5. A Battle to Rage

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Five: A Battle to Rage

The hanger of Demon's Run echoed with the cries of the armies of Her Holiness. Men and women, sworn to protect the faith, raised their fists in defiance. They would not fall to the trickery of the silver-tongued Doctor. They were soldiers of the church. They would prevail.

Colonel Manton stood on a raised platform overlooking his forces. He had personally selected each one for the task of capturing and holding Amelia Pond. Their mission was nearly complete. The weapon was in their hands. Soon, the battle with the Doctor would be won. A rare smile spread across his tight lips at the thought of impending victory. The deceiver would meet his end upon the sword of Her Holiness's judgment. Nothing could stop them now.

Then, without warning, the lights went out.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

_"Computer secure!"_ Mickey's voice echoed throughout the TARDIS consul. _"Preparing to cut the lights…now!"_

A second transmission came through. _"Danny Boy to the Doctor. Danny Boy to the Doctor! Target is in sight."_

A slow smirk lifted the edges of the Doctor's lips. He leaned over the consul, his eyes fixed on the screen showing three War World II Fighter Planes screaming through open space; their target: the Demon's Run transmitters. "Give 'em hell, Danny Boy!"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Explosions rocked the interior of the secret base. The soldiers locked in darkness looked about in wild confusion, guns at the ready and breath baited for what would happen next.

Far above the chaos, in a prison of white walls and glass, Amy stood with Martha, searching the darkness. "What is that?" she asked as another shock wave rumbled through the walls.

"The signal!" Martha declared. The spy had prepared for this moment for three months. The darkness was her ally, and she would use it to her advantage. Taking Amy's hand, she navigated from memory the pathways around furniture and walkways to the door. _Three. Two. One._

The cell door opened with a _whoosh._ "Stay behind me!" was Martha's only warning before she plunged them into the artificial night.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Lorna pressed herself against the wall, uncertain of what to do. The base was under attack. Demon's Run was _never _under attack! _It has to be the Doctor!_ Only he was strong enough to come against this base. Her heart raced at the thought. Finally, she would get to meet him again.

"Retrieve the child." Kovarian's voice cut through her thoughts. Lorna stood still, listening. She could hear three sets of boots—two had broken off to the left. One continued past her. _Kovarian._ She was taking the baby and leaving before the Doctor could stop them.

_Oh no, you don't._ Lorna withdrew her gun, shrugged out of her remaining gear, and gave chase. Her chance to help the Doctor had arrived at long last. She would not waste it.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

_"Transmitters destroyed,"_ Danny Boy reported.

"Well done, lads!" The Doctor looked up from the monitor to the third and final wave of soldiers he was sending into battle. Rose and Jack waited at the TARDIS door for the opportune moment, when the fear and confusion of the hanger was at its peak. Something within him, something buried beneath the anger and desire for vengeance, ached at the sight. He had never wanted to see her like this.

"Ready, Jack?" she was asking. There was no need. They had been prepared for this since the Gangers. They knew what they would do. They knew why. It was simply a formality now.

Jack nodded and gripped the door. At her signal, they would attack.

"Rose," the Doctor called.

Rose looked at him. Her eyes were cold, focused; the Commander was ready for battle.

"Please don't kill anyone."

She nodded slowly; the silent promise forged between them; and then turned to Jack and ordered him to "Go."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Kovarian navigated the dark hallways with ease. Loss of light was nothing when she was wearing her eye patch. The Doctor was here. Her trap was set. It was only a matter of time.

The soldiers met her at a junction. "Follow me." Her ship was close. "Remember, the Doctor must think he's won before the trap can close."

One corridor back, Lorna held in a gasp.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The hanger was flooded with a blinding gold light. The soldiers cried out in shock and pain. It _burned_!

From within the molten flare, they came.

They moved as one, striking at the heart of the force. The confusion and the fear mounted with each cry cut short, each grunt of pain, and each sickly thumb of a body hitting the unfeeling floor. Weapons fired and orders were shouted, but no one could stop them. One by one, the soldiers of Her Holiness fell to the force of this mysterious pair.

Manton stood frozen on the platform. His ears were assaulted with the pleas of his soldiers. He tried to give orders. He tried to rally his forces. He tried _everything_, but in darkness, there was no hope. Desperately, he turned to the Monks. "Help us!" he begged.

An electric crackle heralded the advancement of the Monks. They raised their swords. The purple light of the energy blades broke through the darkness, casting the battle field into a muted purple haze. But it was too late.

Guns cocked all around them.

One pressed into Manton's head.

The bay lights surged to life, revealing the truth.

A legion of Judoon had the Monks surrounded. The Face of Boe stood in the middle of Manton's soldiers; all were on the ground, some cradling broken arms or legs, others were unconscious, and every weapon was thrown to the farthest reaches of the hanger. And standing before him, her pistol aimed for the point between his eyes, was the Bad Wolf. "Hello," she hissed.

A brave young recruit staggered to his feet in a valiant effort to save his commander, but the Face of Boe's gun was aimed for the back of his head in an instant.

"Don't even try," the Bad Wolf growled, not once taking her eyes from Manton.

The cadet sank down with a whimper.

Manton stood as steel before his enemy. His aura pulsed with arrogant defiance. "You will not get away with this," he said. "We are Soldiers of Light. We will not be defeated by _heretics_."

A cold anger flashed through the Wolf's eyes. She leaned forward ever so slightly. "I could erase you from time."

Manton matched her glare for glare. "Then why don't you?"

"The Doctor wants to speak with you."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Kovarian grinned at the sight of her ship. The airlock was rimmed with red emergency lights, bringing a reprieve from the suffocating black cloak covering the base. Her victory was close at hand. She could almost taste it. "Give me the child."

The soldiers handed her the white pod containing their prize, saluted, and then returned to their post.

Kovarian turned to type in the commands that would open the airlock when the cold steel of a blade pressed into her throat. The servant of The Silence stilled under the unforeseen turn of events.

"I wondered why she told me to wait here." Rory William stepped out of the shadows. The red haze outlined his face, his uniform, and his sword. Cold fury burned in his narrowed eyes as he backed Kovarian away from her escape. "Give me my child."

"You'll never win," Kovarian said; her voice steady. "My ship has twenty men."

The airlock opened. The captain of her ship stumbled out, tied and gagged, at gun point. Captain Avery and Toby stepped out behind him, declaring, "The ship is ours!"

Rory looked back at his captive. "You were saying?"

Kovarian eyed the blade; the first traces of nervousness filled her visible eye. "You won't kill me."

"No," Rory confirmed. "I am sure the Doctor will want to see you." He motioned to Captain Avery.

The space pirate turned his gun on the captive madam. "Move."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Manton was forced to his knees before his defeated army, his hands behind his head and his eyes watching the open doorway in space. That vile blue box materialized around the breach, revealing the mystery as to how the Bad Wolf and the Face of Boe attacked his forces so swiftly. They had flown that devil ship into the midst of _his_ base. Anger seared through him. The insolence, the audacity! He would have his revenge!

"Four minutes and forty two seconds." The Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS. He was dressed in tweed and sauntered with ungracious cock. He approached the imprisoned colonel with an air of one talking of the weather over tea. "That has to be some sort of record for taking over a military base. Wouldn't you agree?"

"You have not taken anything," Manton growled. "Demon's Run will never fall as long as her soldiers fight for her!"7

"That is why you are going to order your men to run away," the Doctor said simply.

"My men will _never_ surrender," Manton countered.

"I did not say surrender." All sense of joviality vanished into a dark cloud. The Doctor leaned over Manton. His presence was oppressing, dangerous, and unpredictable. A cold chill swept down Manton's spine as he forced himself to meet his enemy's eyes. "I said run away. Those words. I want you to be famous for those _exact_ words." He pulled back and turned, addressing the entire gathering. "I want people to call you "Colonel Run Away." I want children laughing outside your house because they found the home of Colonel Run Away." The Oncoming Storm swung back around to bear down on the unfortunate man who dared to cross him. "And when people come to you and ask if coming after me through the _people I love_ is in any way a _good idea_, I want you to tell them your name. Is that understood?"

One day, Manton would tell the few sympathetic listeners who had the grace to hear his side of the story that he had been ensnared in the Doctor's evil spell and that is what compelled him to do the following injustice. He nodded.

The Doctor stood up straight. "Good."

"Mickey, are you ready?" Rose asked through her wrist communicator.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

From the control room far above the hanger, Mickey called back, "Ready!"

Behind him, Strax had his gun on the captured Communication Officers. "Why is it that _I_, the great Commander Strax, am forced to guard weaklings whilst the inferior Judoon enjoy the taste of battle? It is injustice!"

"Quit your griping, Strax. There'll be more battles in the future."

Strax harrumphed and kicked one the officers for good measure.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The Doctor pulled out his screwdriver and set it to frequency 8359fs7; a frequency that synced his beloved device with the intercommunication system of Demon's Run. The light on the end changed from green to red. He smiled to himself. "You are live, Colonel." He lowered the screwdriver to Manton. "Make it clear."

Manton closed his eyes, as if not watching would give him the ability to deny that the next few seconds were happening. "Attention. This is Colonel Manton. The Doctor is here. He has the base." His throat went dry as he tried to speak _those words_. "I order you to…to…"

"Say it," the Doctor growled.

"Run away."

"Again," the Doctor urged. "I don't think they heard you."

"Run away!" Manton said. "Everyone, I order you to run away!"

"That's right!" the Doctor taunted through the screwdriver. He stepped back from Manton. "You heard the Colonel! Get off my asteroid!"

A low chuckle cut off what would have been a most impressive speech from the Doctor. Kovarian, flanked by Captain Avery, Toby, and Rory the Roman holding a baby, shook her head. "You coward," she spat at Manton.

Manton dropped his head in shame; it was a shame he would never lose.

"You!" Amy's shrill cry echoed through the hanger. She and Martha had arrived at the south entrance on the far end. The fiery ginger broke from her companion's side. "You bitch!" she continued as she stormed across the space until she reached the curly-haired leader. Her hand was up even before she had closed the distance, and the slap that followed carried the force and fury of a mother scorned. "What have you done with her?" Kovarian had little time to raise her head before another slap assaulted her cheek. "Where's Melody?" Amy demanded with tears in her eyes. "Where's my baby?"

"Right here, Mrs. Williams." Rory stepped around the shaking captive. Amy froze for only a moment, her third slap stopped mid-swing at the sight of her husband, dressed once more like the Roman she loved, and he was holding…

"Melody," Amy breathed. She ran to her husband and scooped her child up with a cry. "You're ok! Is she ok?" She looked up at Rory. He was so beautiful. She had missed him so much.

His marvelous eyes were filling with tears. "She's fine," he sniffed. "Oh God, I wanted to be cool. I told myself I would be cool."

Amy laughed through her own tears as she rested Melody on her shoulder and reached for her lover. "Crying Roman," she whispered. "Very cool." Then she kissed him.

Kovarian scowled darkly at the couple.

"You took Melody?" the Doctor inquired, turning his back to his companions and allowing them a moment's privacy.

Kovarian turned her glare on him. "What of it? I am not afraid of a good man whose rules stop him from causing any real harm. Well." She shot an unreadable look at Rose. "Not at his own hand, anyway."

The Doctor stepped between her and Rose, his anger spiking. "Good men don't need rules. Today is not the day to figure out why I have so many."

"Doctor." The Doctor looked up at the woman he had not seen in so many years; a woman who had seen this darkness in him before and knew what could happen should he not be checked. Martha filled the space in front of him, blocking him from his prey, and said firmly, "That's enough. The battle's over. Leave her."

The Doctor released his anger in a rush. "For now," was all he said. Then, he turned and stalked away.

"Officer Jones?" Martha turned at the confused inquiry. Madam Kovarian stared at her trusted officer with pure betrayal. "But why? How could you?"

Martha smiled in false pleasantries. "I am Martha Smith," she said as she pulled her TARDIS key from beneath her uniform. "Former Companion of the Doctor. Why wouldn't I? Now." She looked around the hanger. "Where's _my_ husband?"

"_Up here, you fine lady_." Mickey waved at her. Martha waved back, her smile regaining its genuine spirit, and hurried off; after all, she had not seen him in three months, and she wanted a kiss.

Rose watched her go for a moment. _Martha Smith_, she reflected. Mickey had done well. She was an extraordinary woman and the perfect spy; she was an earthling with little to no residual traces of Vortex in her system and no anomalies linked with living in an alternative dimension; The Silence had had no record of her and no reason to be suspicious. She had infiltrated without any hassle, and now, they were victorious because of her. _Well done._

She turned her mind to the future. They had a military base at their disposal. Now what? She marched over to Jack and began to give the orders. "Join Mickey in the communication room to oversee the removal of the army. Have the Jadoon escort all prisoners out of the system and coordinate with Captain Avery about having the injured moved onto his ship and transported to the nearest,_ safe_ hospital. Oh, and make sure our historical heroes make it home safely."

"Aye, Commander." Jack trotted off to do as told.

"What of this one, ma'am?" Avery asked, motioning to Kovarian.

Rose eyed the strange woman with unease. There was something about her that she did not like; something in her air and her very presence. It was _wrong_.

Kovarian was grinning. "The Bad Wolf. A fitting name for the Doctor's attack dog."

"Turn her over to the Jadoon," Rose said. "I'm sure they will have something to say in regards to her multiple violations of the Shadow Proclamation." She left it at that and moved forward into her next task.

"Such a loyal pet," Kovarian continued undeterred. "Unnecessary loyalty. Quite sad, actually, watching a dog repeatedly return to a master who does not want it."

Rose stopped abruptly.

"The Lost Child of Time sacrificed her heart on the altar of the Doctor," she taunted. "And he let it burn."

Rose closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and marched on. "Take her away."

**A.N.: And there we are. This chapter was difficult, I must admit, for battles are not really my forte. But, I believe this turned out quite well. For those of you who may be disappointed with a lack of details in regards to what exactly Jack and Rose did in the darkness, well...insert your favorite kung-fu style assault there and let your imagination run. I did not want to bog the story down with battle moves that are really not a big focus to the moment. Anyway, onto the true dangers. What happens _after_ the battle will shape our heroes' destinies. Teehee.**


	6. A Promise to Keep

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Six: A Promise to Keep

"Six months?" Rory could not believe it.

But Amy was adamant as she rocked Melody in her arms. She had been held prisoner for six months after waking up from the Ganger.

"That's can't be right," Rory countered with a shake of his head. "We searched for you for _maybe_ two months. Tops."

Amy shrugged, not wanting to argue. After the action had settled down, the reunited couple slipped away to a more private location to simply enjoy being together again. In that time, Rory had caught Amy up on all that had happened on their side—discovering she was a Ganger, waging war across the stars in search of her, and the planning and executing of this battle. Amy listened with great interest as her husband sheepishly reported his now being a legend amongst the stars.

"The Last Centurion battling the universe in search of his lost love," Amy hummed with a cheeky grin. "Very sexy."

Rory blushed and stuttered on to safer topics; like meeting Mickey and Martha Smith, past companions of the Doctor; watching the Doctor struggle over not being in charge. Or, most fascinating of all, Rose's new ability to both talk to and control the TARDIS.

"It was weird," Rory exclaimed as he sat on a crate next to his wife. "It was like something from a comic. She just stretched out her hand and _whoosh_, we took off."

"Whoosh?" Amy giggled.

"It isn't funny," Rory countered, worry in his aging eyes. His mind was filled with memories of a certain conversation he had had with Commander Tyler what seemed like ages ago in ancient tunnels beneath Florida. She had said that traveling with the Doctor resulted in punishments—punishments like becoming immortal or being written in and out of time or, in Rose's case, being something close to a demigod. He looked at Amy, his beautiful wife holding their beautiful daughter, and his heart began to ache with dread. Had her kidnapping been her punishment? Or was this just the beginning of something far worse? Amy had suffered comparatively less than the rest of them. He worried for her.

But, in a move too like the Doctor's for his liking, he put on the mask of the loving, jovial Rory and continued with his story. When he finished, he waited for Amy to share her side.

"There isn't much to tell," she admitted. "I thought I was in the TARDIS with you guys. Every once in a while, I would see _that woman_ looking in on me—like she was peeking through a hole in reality, but if I tried to look back, she was gone. Then, after you guys, you know." She made a motion with her hand mimicking the sonic screwdriver dissolving her Ganger double. "I woke up in a white coffin-thing about to have a baby. _That woman_ showed up again, and I gave birth." She gazed loving down at their daughter. "To Melody."

"Melody," Rory whispered. Their daughter. _Their _daughter. The tears were pricking again as he stroked her soft hair. "Hello, Melody Williams."

"Melody Williams?" Amy laughed. "That's a geography teacher!" She lifted her daughter up, pride in her eyes and wonder in her voice as she declared, "Melody Pond is a superhero."

"Geography teacher. Superhero. I don't care." Rory took his daughter into his arms and held her against his chest, breathing in her scent. "As long as she's safe."

"She is safe," Amy said. She placed a loving hand over her husband's cheek, drawing his gaze. "You made her safe."

Rory smiled and turned to kiss her palm. "I missed you, Mrs. Williams."

A rare moment of true sentimentality; Amy swallowed her tears as she leaned forward to whisper "I missed you, Mr. Pond."

Their lips met, and, with Melody safe between them, they drank deep this moment when they were together as a family for the first time.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

_"Last of the Jadoon transports leaving the sector now."_

Rose walked through the empty corridors of Demon's Run, her pistol in her hand, and her eyes watching the shadows with uncertainty. Something wasn't right. She could not explain it. Not this time. After the battle with the Silence, she had been certain that their adventure was not over. Amy being a Ganger had confirmed her suspicions. This time…her frowned deepened as she turned the corner. This time all she had was a sense of foreboding and her instincts as a seasoned soldier telling her that this was not over.

_"Commander?"_

"I'm here, Jack. I heard you."

_"You ok?"_

Rose did not know how to answer that. A few months ago, she would have lied; a smooth lie that brooked no suspicion or argument. But not now. Her time back with the Doctor had been brief, but his effect on her was unmatched. No matter how much time had passed and no matter how many excuses she used to convince herself otherwise, he was still the one who could break her down with a mere look and then build her back up into something more.

_"Unnecessary loyalty." _Kovarian's words laughed at her in the darkness. Rose tried to suppress them, but they had taken root in the soil of her doubts; doubts that had survived years buried behind the walls she had built around her heart in order to protect herself from said alien's influence. The more she ignored that woman's taunting, the more it echoed in her mind, and the more she began to wonder.

_ "What next?"_

Jack's question brought a blissful reprieve from her anxious thoughts. Rose stopped in a junction of four hallways. Demon's Run was a very large base. She would not be able to search the entire thing by herself. Raising her communicator to her lips, she said, "I could use some help down here."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

In the command center, Jack bent over the control panel to speak into the microphone. "What are you doing?"

_"Searching the base. Something doesn't add up."_

Jack's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

There was a pause and a crack of static before Rose answered. _"The Silence joined with the Headless Monks and the Army of Her Holiness in order to capture and keep Amy hidden from us for more than a year, and then we take the base in less than five minutes. What does that say to you?"_

"We are awesome," Mickey chimed in with a smile; Martha was sitting on his lap, snuggling happily with her hubby who she had missed very, very much.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Rose rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I'm being serious, Mickey." She looked around the abandoned base. "Something isn't right here. The facts just don't add up."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Jack's frown deepened. "What are thinking? It's a trap?"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

"I'm not sure," Rose confessed. For the first time, she was at a loss as to what could be coming. It was a strange sensation. She had not been without her foresight since returning to this world, and it had only been getting stronger after their battle with The House. Yet, in this moment, right now, she knew nothing. And the TARDIS was silent.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The gravity of the situation shown on Jack's face, causing both Mickey and Martha to pause. The former companion watched her past commanding officer with growing concern. "Is that bad?"

Jack did not look at them. His eyes were closed; he was thinking. "Rose is never _not_ sure."

The commanding officer of this small band of rebels spoke firmly over the intercom system. _"Mickey, search the database for any records on what they were doing here. Find anything and everything that pertains to Amy and Melody and send it to the Doctor in the TARDIS. Whatever their plan, he'll be able to figure it out. Jack, you and Strax—"_

"_Commander _Strax, you insufferable human!" Strax snapped from his guard post at the door.

_"Help me search the base. Start at level one, work your way down. Send Commander Strax to level six. I'm on five." _

"Aye, Commander." Jack waved Strax out.

"Finally!" the Sontaran rejoiced. "To slaughter!"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Deep in the darkness of space, traveling at light speed, the Jadoon battalion transporting Kovarian were unaware that their ship had been invaded.

The creatures moved in true form of their name—_silently_. Any soldier who saw them forgot a moment later. They passed unhindered down corridors and stairways, through doorways and into the cellblock.

The main guard leapt up from his post at the sight of the unauthorized creatures. He raised his gun, grunting in anger, when he suddenly froze, forgetting why he was even at alert.

At the far end of the room, chained with her hands behind her back, Kovarian lifted her head and smiled.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Mickey typed furiously, accessing files, scanning them, and discarding them with swift efficiency. The soldiers of Demon's Run were not going to make unveiling their secret plans easy. There were innumerable security traps, firewalls, and backend routes to hack, and once he broke through, he had to search each and every system just to make sure he was not missing _something_. Whatever Rose hoped he would find was going to take time; time he suspected they did not have.

So involved was he in his work that he failed to hear his wife's question. "Pardon?"

"I said," Martha started again as she took the free seat next to him and leaned back in thought. "Was she always like this?"

"Who?" Mickey asked. He had just broken into another section and was searching the files. Mostly maintenance reports. Nothing important, _but_ he was getting a hang of their filing system. The file names were coded for better sorting. One or two more systems, and he would be able to crack the code, he was certain!

Martha looked over at him and grinned, proud of her man and his diligence. "Commander Tyler."

His fingers paused over the keyboard. "Oh." He continued his work.

Martha sat up and leaned forward, her arms pressed to her knees. "Come on, Mick. You never talk about life on the other side. What happened?"

"What makes you think something happened?"

Martha frowned her 'I know you are avoiding the subject' frown, leaned back again, and said, "Well, from the way the Doctor spoke about her, I never imaged she would be…" Martha was trying to find the right words.

"Cold?"

Martha looked away.

"It's ok," Mickey said. "You can agree. It's true." He was almost finished cracking the code. "Rose Tyler was never that cold." The computer system dinged, and Mickey clapped once. "Got ya! I've cracked the filing code. Now, to find you." He leaned forward, new determination in his eyes.

"Cold or not, she's right," Martha began again; changing the subject as she stood and stretched. "Kovarian gave up too quickly."

"How so?" Mickey asked.

Martha walked behind him and leaned down to hug him, sighing. "I served under her for three months. She was calculating, confident, almost arrogant. She never once thought to fear the Doctor's coming. It was almost as if she was looking forward to it. It's hard to explain. I never met anyone who wasn't even a little frightened of the Doctor."

"Do you have a theory on what they were planning?"

"I have my suspicions," Martha answered. "Whatever it is, Melody Pond is the key. Try searching Kovarian's personal files. Here is the file code." She typed in a quick sequence, and suddenly, the screen was filled with information that made the Smith's quite nervous.

"Impossible," Martha breathed.

Mickey was already at work. "I'm sending this to the Doctor."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Lorna did not know what to do. All her comrades had been rounded up and shipped away with the Jadoon. She had avoided being captured by climbing into the ventilation system and army crawling to deck nine. She waited there for the evacuation to end. She was sitting there still, now with no plan save this: help the Doctor.

Kovarian had been very clear in her words. The Doctor had to believe he had won. That woman was up to something. But what? Lorna had only served with Kovarian for a few days. The woman had frightened her with all her airs of ruthless authority. Lorna loathed to think what sort of plan the one-eyed Madam had concocted for the Doctor.

Whatever they were, she would not be able to stop them just sitting here. _Be brave, Lorna,_ she encouraged herself. _Like the Doctor._

He had been brave, taking her hand and running through the Gamma Forest. He had laughed at the danger. She had laughed with him. She would show him now that she could laugh on her own. Taking her gun in hand, she breathed deep the cool air, and stood, ready to charge.

"Hold it!" A light blinded her and a red dot appeared on her chest as a scathing voice said, "State your rank and intent!"

Lorna swallowed hard and raised her hands, caught. "Please," she whispered. "I need to save the Doctor."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Jack walked slowly down the quiet hallway, his eyes searching the darkness for signs of any sort of trouble. He did not like the situation one bit. Rose had never once been unsure of something; not since returning all those years ago. Even when he met her sitting in that seedy London bar, she had contained an air of certainty. Nothing truly surprised her anymore, not even the TARDIS blue invitations that had drawn them into this venture in the first place. When they appeared on his desk in their make-shift home base on earth, Rose had simply sighed in resignation and said, "Time's up" before ushering him out to meet who knew at wherever on that seemingly innocent day.

Now, they were here, at a crossroads, and he was left torn between two promises. One was from the woman who loved him more than he could imagine and who made him yearn for the day when he would reciprocate the depth of her affection. She had looked so torn, so desperate as she begged him to "keep her willing." He had not needed an explanation as to who "her" was.

Her—the second proclaimer of the second promise piercing his conscious. Rose Tyler. She had looked so certain in the TARDIS when she had said that they would leave once their mission was over. It had started with the girl in the spacesuit; it was ending now with Amelia Pond; and Jack was left to wonder…what next?

He dared to hope that Rose and the Doctor would never bridge this subject; that they would keep going, keeping traveling, and keep on running until none of them could run anymore. In all his long life, he had never been happier than when he was running with Rose and the Doctor. His happiness would compound once he added River to the equation. However, he could not ignore the tension growing between the two. It had started upon their meeting in the diner after Lake Silencio. It almost diminished during their travels, but it emerged with a vengeance once Amy dissolved into that sickening puddle of Flash. Then, it was back to the defensive airs and jarring barbs and ceaseless arguments. It was almost as if neither of them wanted to stay, and yet neither wanted to leave. Both were being stubborn, and it was driving him mad.

And River had begged him to keep her willing—willing to push through it all and save the Doctor again.

Jack made his decision. He knew which promise he would honor.

"Rose, come back."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Rose was on level four, working her way up to meet Jack, when his call came through. She stopped and leaned against a wall, taking a quick respite. "Did you find anything?"

"_Negative. You?"_

Rose looked to her left. Nothing but more dark hallways. She rolled her head to the right. "I found a door," she reported; a rather important looking door if the security lights embedded in the frame were any indication. She pushed off the wall, her mind back on alert, and headed forward to investigate.

"_Does the door hold the secrets to Demon's Run?"_ Jack joked.

Rose pressed herself against the wall and slowly peered past into the unknown. A thoughtful frown crossed her lips as its secrets were revealed. "Just maybe," she said. She holstered her gun and walked in. It was a spacious room from what she could tell with a ramp leading down into a lower level, where living quarters had been set up. The strange thing about it was that it overlooked the hanger. She lingered at the top of the ramp, taking in the entire room before looking back over her shoulder. "I think I found where they were keeping Amy."

"_What gives it away?"_

Rose walked down the ramp, grateful for the small amount of light shining in from the hanger beyond. "There's a crib," she said, pointing to a small bed by the window. She stroked the cool metal frame, imagining little Melody laying there, confused and frightened as Kovarian came to take her away. Rose closed her eyes at the thought. It was too much. She turned away to search the rest of the room.

"_Speaking of Amy, has anyone heard from her and Rory lately?"_

"Negative." Rose noticed something on the floor; a small, dark something that seemed oddly out of place in this generic room.

"_If your suspicions are correct, we should send someone to warn them."_

Two steps had her kneeling next to the discovery. "Not yet," she advised as she withdrew her gun. "Let's not disturb them until we know for certain that there is trouble." They had just found each other again, after all. A little privacy would not hurt. And poor Rory had already spent far too long worrying over the safety of his family. Rose would grant them as much time as she could to simply be happy.

"_Quick question, Commander, since I've got you alone."_

"What?" She nudged the black spot with her gun. Nothing happened.

"_What happens next?"_

She holstered her gun. "What do you mean?"

"_I mean with us,"_ Jack said. _"You told me after the Silence that our mission wasn't over. You knew something was different about Amy."_

"I had my suspicions, yes," Rose confessed for the first time. She reached for the black smudge.

"_When were those suspicions confirmed?"_

It was a piece of cloth. Rose stood up and held the bit of clothing to the light. It was an octagon garnished with eight sown-on triangles at each junction point. Beads added a touch of decoration, but the focal point was the embroidery in the center. It was a language Rose did not know.

"_Rose? Are you still there?"_

Rose sighed and rubbed her eyes. She was getting tired. Physically and mentally. She did not want to have this conversation right now. "I'm here."

"_Are you going to answer me?"_

_Do I have to?_ She wondered. Jack was asking her the one question she had not wanted to think about. What _was_ she going to do now?

"…_the Doctor's attack dog…returning to a master who does not want it."_

Rose closed her eyes and shook her head, as if the action would dislodge the thoughts from her mind. "What is your question, Jack?" she asked, blunt and to the point. No more dancing around the subject. She was not in the mood.

"_Are we leaving or are we staying?"_

Rose walked to the window overlooking the hanger. She could see the TARDIS waiting. She could feel the ancient machine hovering at the edges of her consciousness. Idris had removed her presence at the start of the battle. She would not return until Rose invited her. The beautiful machine did not like violence.

She was so much like the Doctor.

A gold hum whispered through her mind, _"So like you."_

Rose ignored the comment. She was not ready to reopen their bond, least it force her to confront the paths of blood and battle.

And she was not ready to answer Jack's question.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

From two floors up, Jack held his breath. He did not know if he was getting through. And he did not know what else to say. "Rose," he began, searching his memory for something, _anything_ that would remind her why she had once risked everything to stay with her Doctor. Then, like a beacon in the night, it came to him. He raised his vortex manipulator to his lips and said…

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

_"You once told me that you promised the Doctor forever."_

Rose tucked the cloth into her jacket; a distraction. Jack was pulling at memories she preferred remain buried. But, as he completed his sentence, she could not help feeling defeated. Slowly, she closed her eyes, moist heat pooling in the corners. She did not stop them. She did not encourage them. She simply let the tears try to build as she watched the TARDIS and listened to the last echoes of Jack's words.

_"Perhaps now is your time to finally keep that promise."_

__**AN: I got a second job over the Christmas break, thus my time to write is now greatly limited. Expect the updates to be a little longer than normal. However, I have now charted out in full how I plan to conclude Demon's Run and move into Let's Kill Hitler, so the story is on track, and I am pleased with its progress. Reviews are love.**


	7. A Punishment to be Dealt

__**AN:** There was some technical difficulties when I posted chapter 6. The link did not work, thus I had to repost it. So, if you missed Chapter 6, please go back adn read it before proceeding! Thank you.

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Seven: A Punishment to be Dealt

The Doctor was angry. It was a new feeling; something he was not used to even though it had manifested itself seven separate times in this lifetime. Seven was a good number—enough to know what to expect yet not enough to know how to handle it. He knew what to expect of himself when he was angry; he did not know how to handle being angry. It was a conundrum that bordered on dangerous, for anger always had a root in the past and the Doctor never looked back. He always moved forward in all of his beliefs, hoping that he was never mistaken in the choices he made. However, recently, in these last few lives, he was beginning to wonder…and _that_ was making him angry.

He wondered if he should have kept to his promise never to take a companion again. He destroyed everything he touched—a bad habit, an irritating trait, and yet, it seemed to intensify after the war. How could it not? He who murdered his entire race for the sake of an ungrateful universe; how could he not become the destructive force ruining the lives of so many? And it started with a simple shop girl who had the audacity to trust him when he said "Run." She placed the desire back in his heart to never be alone. It was her fault. She never should have trusted him. She never should have run with him. She never should have saved his life. If she hadn't…

Martha would not have become a soldier.

Jack would not be immortal.

And Amy and Rory would not have had to suffer the near loss of their future as a family.

It all started with her, and that was making him angry. For, no matter how hard he tried to convince himself, it was not fully her fault. Far from it. It was his. He had returned for her. And they ran, never stopping, and never looking back. He had deluded himself into thinking that his penance was paid and that he could be happy again. But as Rose had put it the day after the moon, the universe would not stand for him to go unpunished. It went so far as to assault all he loved and wished to protect.

Amy had been kidnapped and forced to watch her child taken from her.

Rory had died protecting him and was written out of time.

Martha went from being a doctor who healed to a soldier who killed.

And Rose, that simple shop girl, now stood as the one thing he feared the most. She was fire and ice and rage burning through time, manipulating lives and futures and fates in order to stop the evil that threatened the greater good. She sacrificed everything to stop him, to save him, and to protect him. She was turning into _him_. And he could not bear it.

The TARDIS hummed all around him; a ghostly whisper of the voice he so desperately craved. It was another source of his anger. Rose could hear the TARDIS; he could not. It was not fair. He wanted so badly to speak to Idris. She would know what to do; what he _should_ do. She had had no qualm with leaking the future in order to save her thief. Perhaps she could have saved him from this—anger, heart ache, and rage. He was the Doctor. He had nearly become a general, but, as the coward he was, he let Rose take that role. Now, he was the lead victor, and she was his soldier. They all were. It was the Medusa Cascade all over again. The Children of Time were his force to be reckoned with. How had it come to this?

"Doctor, are you there?"

The Doctor snatched his sonic screw driver from the consul and snapped, "What?" before wincing at the severity of his words. He was better than this.

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From the control room, Martha frowned at the dark tone of voice replying to her husband's call. It was the same tone he had used when he sentenced the Family to their eternal punishments or when he stood over the deformed Richard Lazarus, speaking with neither hate nor pity as the once-human creature wheezed out its final breaths. It was the darker side of his personality; the one she had hoped to never see again. And it worried her that it was surfacing now.

She leaned over the control panel, silencing Mickey's reply with a wave of her hand, and pressed the intercom button. "Doctor, are you ok?"

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The Doctor's shoulders slumped at the sound of Martha's voice. She had suffered much at his hands, and none of it was her fault. He had been the conduit of punishment against her for his bitterness and hatred of his new fate. Yet, she had stood by his side, constantly worrying for his sanity. She had always been worried. Too much so, and, for that, he had strived to leave her with the assurance that he was, finally, ok. Thus, he bit back his anger, forced on his smile, and answered, "Of course I'm alright, why wouldn't I be?"

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"Oh, I don't know," Martha replied with a quirk of her lips. "Perhaps storming off for a good pout was an indicator."

_"I do not pout!"_ was the Doctor's indignant reply. _"Other creatures pout. _Humans_ pout! But I most certainly do not pout!"_

"I don't know," Martha drawled. "I am certain you did."

_"Martha Jones Smith, whatever you think you saw is wrong. I am the Doctor; I do not pout! Now, what does your idiot husband want?"_

Martha glanced at Mickey, who was watching her with a curiously raised brow; his wife mouthed "Sorry," and moved away from the microphone so they could return to more urgent matters.

"Doctor, we found something that you're gonna want to see," Mickey reported. "We sent it to the TARDIS."

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The Doctor looked up at the central consul as if it were responsible for informing him when he had mail. As expected, the machine remained silence. He jaunted over to the monitor and tapped a few keys and pulled a lever or two and, with a flourish of his hands, the files he had received appeared on the screen.

The Doctor scanned the information, discarding the bits of human intuition bit by bit when, suddenly, he stopped. His eyes widened in shock then narrowed with disbelief. He recalled the previously discarded reports and read them over more carefully. Twice. Three times. Even a fourth before he could commit to reengaging his mind. He stared at the conclusion; the revelation of all Madam Kovarian's work; the true intention of Demon's Run; and his hearts stopped as he whispered, "Impossible."

The whir of the time rotor pierced his thoughts.

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"Doctor?" Mickey asked. "Doctor, come back. What do you mean impossible? What is it?"

Silence was his answer. He looked up at Martha, who, for the second time, looked worried. She leaned over the microphone and spoke quickly. "Doctor, I know you're angry, and I'm sure this doesn't help, but you need to focus. You need to think. How could this have happened?"

More silence.

"Doctor?" Martha tried again. "Doctor!"

Then, there was a burst of static. Martha pulled back from the communicator in shock.

"What's going on?" Mickey exclaimed.

"I don't..." Martha trailed off as a familiar sound echoed through the metal and glass.

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Rose stared in disbelief, unable to comprehend what she was seeing. It could not be true. What was he thinking? Why would he do this? Something had to be wrong. He would never do this. Not now. Not ever! And yet, the proof was before her, playing out in horrid real time as she watched, helplessly, from Amy's prison.

The TARDIS was dematerializing.

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The Doctor dashed around the consul, pulling levers, cranking knobs, and spinning wheels, desperately trying to get his temperamental machine to "Stop!" He gripped the panel, jerked the z-plotter, and yanked the brakes, but nothing was working. The TARDIS was out of control. "Please, old girl!" he begged. Sparks flew up from the consul, knocking him backward into the railing. He gasped as the TARDIS veered dangerously left and then to the right. It was flying erratically, as if trying to throw something off. He forced himself to his feet, braced himself against the wall, and lunged for the controls.

And, suddenly, they stopped.

He hit the grating floor as the lights went out, leaving him in black solitude and silence.

For a moment, he laid still, listening as his panting breath echoed off the walls. Then, he hauled himself up onto his hands and knees and asked the inevitable question, "What happened?"

The monitor blinked to life. An ethereal blue and grey light bathed the dead machine, revealing a face he had never wanted to see again. "Hello, Doctor," grinned Madam Kovarian.

"You," the Doctor hissed. He leaned back on his heels and glared up at the screen. "You should be in the hands of the Shadow Proclamation by now."

Kovarian chuckled. "Did you honestly think the Jadoon could hold me? I am a servant of the Silence. No prison can contain me."

"You want to bet?" the Doctor growled as he pushed himself to his feet. "I have seen empires rise and fall and new civilization built upon the ashes. I'm certain I can find a prison suited for you."

Such a threat would cause the most feared of dictators to wince, and yet, Kovarian remained jovial, even relaxed, and almost…confident. She was not afraid of him. "I'm sure by now that traitor Jones has found my files. So, tell me, Doctor, do you like my work?"

"It's bollocks," the Doctor snapped. Stumbling to the consul, he began testing the levers, trying to awaken his beloved ship.

"Do not even try, Doctor," Kovarian purred. "Your ship is under _our_ control."

"Impossible," the Doctor replied, his hands working quickly to prove her wrong. This was his TARDIS. She had never failed him. She never would. No one could tame her.

Kovarian was laughing again. It was a sound that grating the Doctor's nerves. He cringed under its assault. "Dear Doctor, you poor, deluded creature. How little you truly know. Your little blue box has been under our control since the Pandorica." That word grasped the Doctor's attention with dreadful realization. "Yes," the one-eyed woman drawled. "_We_ destroyed the TARDIS. _We_ caused the universe to crack. And now, we've pulled you far, far away from all that you love."

"Why?" the Doctor gasped.

Kovarian narrowed her eye. "So you can watch."

Life feed from Demon's Run appeared on the monitor; live feed of Kovarian's trap closing in on all that he loved.

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"Please, you have to believe me!" Lorna begged the unmoving Sontaran. "It's a trap! Kovarian has set a trap!"

"Be silent and keep moving, prisoner!" Strax commanded, giving Lorna a good shove to prove his point.

"Please," Lorna tried again. She would not give up. She needed to warn the Doctor before it was too late.

"I said be silent!" Strax snapped, raising his riffle discipline the unruly captive.

Then, the lights went out.

And the haunting voices of the Headless Monks filled the empty air.

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"Your band of soldiers thinks they have won, but the trap is now being sprung, and there is nothing you can do about it."

The Doctor redoubled his efforts to get something, _anything_ from the TARDIS; his mind a vortex of fear, anger, and desperation. "Leave them alone!" he commanded as he pumped the primary. "I swear to you, Kovarian, you know what will happen should you disregard my warnings."

"Oh, Doctor, please," Kovarian mocked from behind the feed. "You still think you're the one in control. Demon's Run was always going to fall. We knew you were coming. And we planned accordingly."

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"Doctor!" Martha tried for the hundredth time. "Doctor, come in!" Static was her only answer.

"Rose, Jack, can anyone hear me?" Mickey tried to comlink to no avail. He met his wife's gaze. "This isn't good, love."

"I know." She tried the microphone once more. "Doctor! Doctor, come in! Do you read me? Come in!"

The control room door slid closed behind them, making the two soldiers jump; dread filled both of them when the unmistakable sound of a lock sliding into place echoed through the room.

Mickey cautiously checked the door. His suspicions were confirmed even before he chanced the lock. They were trapped.

The communication system sputtered to life long enough to deliver a message from their executioner. _"No one betrays me, Jones."_ Kovarian hissed.

Then the consul burst into flames.

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"It was all too easy kidnapping Amelia Pond right out from under the nose of her ever watchful husband. Do you think they suspect the truth?" Kovarian asked. "Do they know their daughter is a Time Lord?"

"That's impossible," the Doctor argued. He removed the grating and dove beneath the consul, yelling back at her, "Melody Pond is 100% human!"

"Is she really?" Kovarian asked as she grinned evilly. "Doctor, where are you? Come out, come out, wherever you are. Come and face the truth."

The Doctor yelped as he was shocked by the wires he was trying to hotwire. The TARDIS groaned but did not come alive.

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Jack knew something was wrong. He could feel it. He ran through the empty hallways, trusting his instincts more than his eyes. The lights were going out. The echoes of a chant bounced off the walls, taunting him with the dangers of things unseen. The enemy was here! But where?

"_A question, Captain," _a voice asked from the vortex manipulator.

Jack skid to a halt, his gun raised, and his mind set. He would not die here.

"_How do you kill an immortal?"_

The wall to his left exploded. Jack had a mere moment to see his fate before he was sucked out into open space.

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"Do you know how the Time Lords were born?"

The Doctor ignored her. He needed to focus. He needed figure out how they were controlling his TARDIS and reverse it. He _would save_ his friends!

"It was from exposure to the time vortex," she said, knowing he could hear her. There was nowhere for the Doctor to run. He was at her mercy. She was going to enjoy this; every, single, second.

"Over billions of years!" the Doctor yelled back. "You could _not_ have mimicked that in a child!"

"I didn't have to."

That statement drew the Doctor from his hole. "What?" he asked.

"Melody was Time Lord upon conception."

The Doctor leapt to his feet, his screwdriver pointing at Kovarian, and his eyes hot with anger as he yelled, "Liar! I would never!"

Kovarian's grating laughter cut him off. "No, you did not. Why would you when you have the goddess so near your bed?" Rose's image appeared in the center; the camera angel changing from her back to her face. "Poor child. Lost in time and space. Forced away against her will."

The blood drained from the Doctor's face as he saw what Kovarian had in store for _her_.

"No," he whispered. "No, please."

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Rose felt it long before she saw it. It was the inevitable conclusion to the recent unfolding events. The moment the TARDIS disappeared, she knew they had been caught.

And she knew who it was she would face if she turned around.

Closing her eyes, she clenched her fists, and turned to face the legion of Silence filling Amy's prison.

"Well then," she whispered as she opened her eyes. They were glowing gold. "Bring it on."

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"You have a way of hurting people even when you do not meddle. Amy and Rory conceived Melody on the TARDIS, exposing her to the Vortex at her most vulnerable stage."

The Doctor sat back on his heels, looking up at the mad madam once more, unable to swallow the truth. "How could you possibly…"

"Haven't you been listening?" Kovarian chided. "We've been watching you for years, ever since the Master tried to destroy time. The Pandorica was our first attempt; an alliance of all your enemies coming together to stop you."

"But you failed," the Doctor said absently, his mind unable to cope with the compounding lose playing out before his eyes. "I won."

"You did," Kovarian conceded. "Then, we thought of a better plan; a better force; a better _weapon_."

The windows changed back to Amy and Rory; the camera zoomed in on Melody; and the Doctor's anger spiked. "A child is not a weapon!"

"But she will be," Kovarian said. "A Time Lord to kill a Time Lord. You have always been our target, Doctor, and we will do _anything_ we must to destroy you."

"But you failed!" the Doctor said again. "You failed. I saved Melody! And I will keep saving her from you!"

A cruel, vicious smirk twisted Kovarian's lips. "Oh Doctor, fooling you once was a pleasure, but to fool you twice in the same way is a privilege."

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"Rory? What's wrong?"

Rory did not know why, but he could not shake the feeling that something was about to happen. Something bad. It was an instinct he had developed in his time as a Roman soldier and had not lost even after his reincarnation. It was a cold tick in the back of his mind; an itching desire to unsheathe his blade. He felt the need to protect his family. But from what? That was the question drawing him to the closed door.

The lights were going out in the hallway beyond. "Amy," he began.

Then she screamed.

And he turned to see the sight that would haunt his dreams for years to come. Amy was grasping the empty cloth that had held their daughter; she was covered in the residue of a flesh avatar. Tears were already pouring down her face as she looked up at him in confusion, fear, and utter disbelief. They had been tricked. The Silence still their daughter.

And outside, the Headless Monks were closing in; their prayer of attack already ringing in the young couples' ears.

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Millions of years and light years away from Demon's Run, the Doctor screamed.

**AN: **Have to admit, this chapter had me stressing. It is very difficult to write the Doctor. Keeping him in character is something I strive to do; hopefully, I succeeded. We are drawing close to the conclusion of Demon's Run. But, what's more, we are drawing close to the revelation of the history of Commander Rose Tyler. Stay tuned. And review.


	8. A Trap to Escape

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Eight: A Trap to Escape

In all the worlds in all the universes in all the times he had seen, the Doctor could not think of one that held the words that could convey the depth of his pain. He knelt in defeat in front of the silent TARDIS; his hands limply gripped the consul as he stared unseeing into the darkness, lost; and hovering over him, smirking and arrogant in her victory, watched Kovarian. "It is over," she said. It was a simple statement of fact—something he was powerless to change.

Anger burned hotly in his hearts, giving him the strength to raise his head. His eyes were dark with rage, and his breathe was labored as he focused on her face. He would memorize ever detail. He would make sure he never forgot how she looked in this moment—so certain of herself—so that the despair he would see blossom on that same face would be all the more sweet. "I will find you," he vowed. "No matter where you run, no matter which universe, no matter which time, no matter where you _think_ I could never find you, I _will_ be there, waiting. And I _will_ kill you."

Kovarian's smirk grew in the face of her own death sentence. "I'm counting on that, Doctor, for when you do, our perfect weapon will be waiting for you."

Melody Pond; Amy's daughter; the little girl trapped in the space suit; the child he failed to save. "No," he growled. "No, I will save her."

Kovarian laughed. "How can you when you cannot even save her parents?"

The live feed was still streaming from Demon's Run. The Doctor watched helplessly as Amy and Rory fought the Headless Monks while running blindly through the unfamiliar halls of the abandoned base.

"I will save her," the Doctor whispered again; a promise he would see fulfilled even if it meant his own death. He would not leave the child of his dearest friends in the hands of his deadliest enemies. "I swear I will!"

Kovarian's smirk finally faltered. In the face of his determination and in the dawning of his returning resolve, her enjoyment of his pain halted abruptly, leaving sour disappointment. "As you wish." A count down appeared on the screen. "Try and save her. Go ahead. But," The clock began to tick down from ten minutes. "Nothing you do will change anything."

The pain surged again as his superior mind quickly deduced what that timer could mean. "Kovarian," he warned.

"Good bye, Doctor."

"I will find you!"

The monitor went black save for the numbers counting down.

"Kovarian!" The Doctor lunged for the monitor. His hands grabbed it in with white-knuckled force as he screamed, "I will find you! I WILL FIND YOU!"

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Jack had to admit in the seconds following his ejection into open space that this was probably the sole answer to the riddle posed him prior to his execution. How best to kill a man who could never die than to throw him out into absolute nothingness, dooming him to float in eternal suffocation until, perhaps, he passed a merciful star that would continuously crush him in its oppressive core? It was well thought out, he had to admit.

However, Jack was not in the mood to die. For the first time in a very long time, he had something for which to live. He had River waiting for him to catch up to her timeline; to cross that point where they would meet and their love would begin. He had Rose who was still so lost in this new universe despite traveling with him for near a decade; he needed to protect her until she found her heart again. Amy and Rory were in danger; they were the Doctor's companions; they would always be in danger. He wanted to make sure they survived to raise their daughter. And then, of course, there was the ever stupid, never changing, fully irritating Doctor being his stubborn self. Jack still needed to knock some sense into that time bungler.

Thus, in the three seconds from being safe in Demon's Run to floating in open space, Jack determined that he would not die here. He utilized his stubborn will to motion. He swung his arms up, balled up his fist, and punched his Vortex Manipulator.

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Jack had been right. He would always be a soldier. Rory swung around and plunged his sword into the gullet of the Monk who was moving to attack his wife from behind. _Especially when the one I love is in danger._ He ripped his weapon free with a satisfaction he had not felt since his days as a legionnaire. For the first time in over two thousand years, he found himself craving battle. He would kill every single one of these Headless Monks who dared threaten his wife.

Amy, for her part, was fighting with all the furies of hell inside of her. Tears, sweat, and the residue of their child stained her not as deeply as loss stained her heart. Having stolen a sword from a fallen Monk, she hacked and stabbed with wild abandon and reckless skill, dismembering more than killing but causing pain regardless. The Silence had taken her baby girl. And this Scottish mother was furious.

The lovers moved back to back, tearing away at their enemy's numbers all the while moving swiftly through the corridors. Only the purple light of the Monks' swords illuminated the area, leaving them guessing as to how near or far might be their target. Still, they moved. They would not stop. They needed to reach the hanger and the safety of the TARDIS.

Rory pivoted to the right, ducking down under Amy's wild swing from the left and jabbed the flailing Monk through the stomach. He used his momentum to free his sword and charge another who marched up in that same stoic gate to take the place of his dead comrade. These Monks were fearless and relentless. Though the claim was to live without the head in order to devote the heart, Rory knew it was the reverse. These _creatures _had no heart.

Lasers blasted by his head. Three Monks fell back. Amy and Rory turned in shock.

A young girl, barely a woman, with long brown hair stood with Strax; she was dressed as a soldier of Her Holiness; both had their guns raised against the Monks.

"Bucket?" Amy gasped.

"Come on!" Loran yelled. She opened fire on the rallying Monks, Strax following suit.

Rory grabbed his wife's hand and pulled her down the corridor, Amy's sword lighting the way . Lorna and Strax continued to give cover fire for a moment longer before following.

"I have saved your worthless lives, humans!" Strax said as he caught up. "You are in debt to me, the great Commander Strax!"

"Is that all you think about?" Lorna asked.

Rory lead them down a turn and another, sensing the Monks following. However, their prayer walk was not fast enough to catch them. Not yet. The Monks were confident in their victory and skills. They were in no rush to catch their prey. That concerned Rory more than the need to find respite.

The small band of refugees came to a dead end. Rory looked around in a mild moment of panic. "Oops," he whispered.

"Well done, human," Strax grunted. "You lead us to our death." He marched back the way they had come, to "be the first to face the enemy and die valiantly in our final stand!"

"Don't worry," Lorna said, ignoring the Sontaran. She lifted her riffle to its longest reach and used it to jab at the ceiling. A hidden door opened with a _whoosh_. "Look out," was her warning before an emergency ladder slid to the ground. "It's a maintenance hatch. This ladder will lead us to the upper levels."

"Thanks," Rory said.

But, his gratitude was cut short.

Amy had raised her sword against Bucket, her eyes narrowed and angry. "I don't trust you," she growled.

"Amy, what are you doing?" Rory demanded. "She saved us!"

Amy ignored her husband, her focus on the one person who could possibly know what happened to her daughter. "You work for them!"

Lorna raised her hands; her face was calm. "I did," she admitted. "But not anymore."

"Where's my daughter!" Amy commanded. "You were there. You saw them take her. What did they do with her!"

"I don't know," Lorna confessed.

"Liar!" Amy stepped forward threateningly, the blade sizzling in the air and burning the collar of Lorna's uniform. "Tell me what you did with my baby!"

"They are coming," Strax declared from his guard post. The corridor beyond was beginning to echo with the sounds of the Monks' chants.

"Amy," Rory tried.

But Amy would have none of it. "Tell me or I will kill you." She meant it.

But Lorna was not afraid. She kept her hands raised and her face calm as she answered the hurting mother. "I am sorry, Mrs. Pond. I was not aware of what they were doing. I thought you had saved the child." She looked to Rory. "I saw you take Kovarian prisoner."

"Why are you here?" Rory asked.

Lorna turned to check the progress of their advancing foe. Purple light was growing strong. They were close. "Please," she said, "I will tell you, but you must climb! I can get us to the hanger from here. We'll be safe."

The songs of battle were louder now.

Strax was grinning.

Rory made his decision. He placed a firm hand over Amy's. "Amy," he said in a calm yet commanding tone. "Go first."

For a moment, Amy did not move, her desperation driving her, yet, the feel of her husband's steady hand and the sound of his powerful voice smoothed her rage for a moment, allowing needed clarity. She would never find Melody if she was dead. Glaring one final time at Lorna, she lowered her sword and started up the ladder.

"Thank you," Lorna said as she lowered her hands.

Rory nodded. "Hurry up," he said. Lorna quickly followed Amy. The powerful soldier hurried down the corridor to get Strax. "Come on," he ordered, grabbing the Sontaran by the back of his collar and hauling him down the hall, all the while ignoring the howled indignations of the stubborn warrior. He forced the clone up the ladder and followed just as the Monks turned the corner.

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The fire blazed hot and strong. The control room was filling with smoke. And for the first time in a long time, Martha wondered how they were going to get out of this.

Mickey, her wonderful, talented, and intelligent husband, had pulled the door control panel apart and was trying to hotwire it. "Bollocks!" he snapped as it shocked him for the third time. He threw the wires down in disgust. "Well, that's not working."

"Mickey," Martha whispered, the first signs of fear creeping into her voice. She backed against the door.

Mickey took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "This ain't our end, doll. Remember." He grinned at her and tapped his nose. "Nothing stops the Smiths."

Despite their situation—suffocation on smoke and burning in a blazing electrical fire—Martha smiled in true happiness because of the man standing with her. She had followed him into danger because of that smile. He had talked her into leaving the security of Torchwood to run head first into a life of freelance earth defense. They had tracked down Jaquabites, relocated Brivilian refugees, and even negotiated the release of an Ikatian prince from his Akurian enemies. And, in the fires of a Develian Battleship, she had said yes to his request of marriage; all because of his damned smile. She would be courageous as long as he would smile.

"Remember Scandinavia?"

Martha nearly laughed.

As one, the married mercenaries raised their guns, yelled in defiance of their fate, and charged the glass window separating them from the hanger. Their guns unleashed hell on that transparent plane. Together, they jumped onto the burning consul, pushed off even as the heat melted the soles of their boots, and catapulted through the shattering glass into the open air of the hanger beyond.

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"A Sontaran is meant to fight in wondrous battle," Strax complained. "Not crawl around tunnels like vermin."

"Just keep going," Lorna chided. "You'll have plenty of battle to fight once we reach the hanger."

They had been crawling through the maintenance tunnels for none knew how long. Red and yellow lights were a welcome break from the darkness. Lorna led the way through a maze of tunnels and ladders leading up levels to where, they hoped, to find the hanger. The journey was made in relative silence save for Strax's constant complaints. However, as the time passed, Rory could not help the need to ask the one question weighing on both his and Amy's mind.

"Why are you helping us?"

He could not see the young soldier's face. If he had, he would have been surprised at the innocent longing displayed there. "You are friends of the Doctor," she said as if that were explanation enough.

"You're the Doctor's enemy," Amy hissed.

"No," Lorna declared fervently. "I'm not."

Amy scoffed at that. "You work for the Army of Her Holiness and the Silence. They want the Doctor dead!"

"They do, but I don't!" Lorna said. "I joined this army so I could _meet_ the Doctor."

"Why would you join an army to meet the Doctor?" Amy snapped.

Lorna turned her head, true confusion on her face. "How else do you meet a great warrior?"

Amy paused in her crawl, her expression matching Lorna's. "The Doctor's not a great warrior."

"Then why is he called "Doctor"?" Before either companion could think of an answer, they reached the tunnel's end. "Here we are." Lorna pounded the wall three times. It opened with the same _whoosh_ as their entrance. She crawled out into the dark hanger.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Blissful cold air embraced the flying couple as they escaped the inferno, allowing for one moment of clear breathing before they both landed hard atop a stack of crates. They gasped, losing the little breath they had won, and tumbled down until they landed in a heap on the hanger floor.

Above, the fires continued to rage. But, they were alive. "See?" Mickey gasped. "Just like Scandinavia."

Martha coughed out a laugh and mustered enough energy to swat his shoulder. Then, they were both laughing. They had actually escaped.

"Oiy!" Someone called from the darkness beyond.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith sat up in time to see Rory and Amy materialize from the shadows. They both looked like how Mickey and Martha felt yet, despite that, smiles were exchanged as the band of time warriors was reunited.

"Thank God you guys are safe," Martha breathed as she pushed herself to her feet.

"We had some help," Amy said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder.

Lorna stood a few feet back with Strax, feeling out of place, but her countenance brightened when she saw Officer Jones.

"Lorna," Martha said with a smile.

"Officer Jones!" the young soldier embraced the older woman. "What are you doing here?"

Martha shrugged. "I'm a spy for the Doctor," she said. "Always have been. But, what are _you_ doing here?"

"I wanted to meet the Doctor!" Lorna said with a laugh.

"The Doctor's not here." Mickey's solemn report broke the joyous relief of reunion, bringing the small group back to the crisis at hand. "We saw the TARDIS disappear before." He motioned to the fire.

"What?" Amy asked.

"The Doctor _left_?" Rory continued.

"It must be Kovarian," Lorna said. "I overheard her during the battle saying that it was a trap. That's why I stayed. I was coming to warn you."

"Amy." Martha was looking—for the first time, truly _looking_ at the freed mother. "Where's Melody?"

The pain and fury of earlier surfaced with new strength in her eyes. "They took her."

"Humans!" Strax's yell alerted them to the thing none of them wanted to hear ever again.

The War Prayer of the Monks was filling the hanger.

"Damn it," Rory growled. "They found us."

"To the middle of the room!" Strax ordered.

The new Children of Time ran to the center of the hanger, the place where, not so long ago, they had claimed their victory over Demon's Run. It was now becoming the staging point for their final stand.

"Everyone form a circle, back to back!" Mickey said.

"Guard each other," Martha added.

"We will leave here together," Rory swore.

As one, they withdrew their weapons and waited for their enemy to appear.

**AN: One chapter left in the battle of Demon's Run.**


	9. A Journey Continued

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Nine: A Journey Continued

Deep in the dark recesses of space, a battle for the fate of the ages played out, yet no one was aware. No one knew that, far away in regions unknown, the brave Last Centurion stood facing his greatest foe—a horde of demons with no hearts and one intent: to kill. No, the innocents of the universe moved through their daily lives; laughing and joyous in their security and delighting in the tales coming from travelers afar. None ever suspected the darkness that was hovering on the edges of their world, waiting to consume the single band of soldiers determined to hold it at bay.

No, no one suspected a thing.

Yet, even with the bliss of ignorance shielding the world, there were still those who felt unease. In a distant galaxy; on a small, almost insignificant planet, the Children of Time stopped in their routines and looked to the heavens, feeling it deep in their souls. Some of their own were in grave danger. Each one felt the aching need to help; yet, without the Doctor, what could they do save wait, hope, and pray?

For the fate of the Universe rested in the hands of six brave warriors standing in a tight-knit circle; back to back; heart to heart; with weapons raised to face the cruelest army of all. A single shaft of light served as their defense, illuminating the stifling night that gripped Demon's Run and gave advantage to the Headless Monks.

Rory Williams, the man who had been pulled into this journey so many lifetimes ago by a mad man in a fake cake who promised to aid him in saving his love, stood at the head of this small band. Hot roman blood pumped through his veins; adrenaline heightened his senses; his sword remained still in his steady grasp. He was the Last Centurion, a warrior feared across the stars; he had battled time and space and heaven and hell to protect the woman by his side. He would not die now.

Amy stood steadfast beside her husband. He had come for her; he had saved her. Now, she would save him.

Mickey and Martha Smith flanked the couple, vowing in their hearts to die first if it meant seeing the Williams returned safely to their home. They had lived their adventures; they had already been changed; they would not let Rory and Amy die.

Lorna gulped back her fear. In all her time longing to see the Doctor again, she never thought she would be here. She knew the strength of the Monks. She knew what they were capable of doing. She knew they would not survive. Yet, she raised her gun and waited. She would not flee. She would stand her ground. She _would_ be like the Doctor.

Strax laughed in the face of his impending doom. This was what Sontarans lived for—glorious death in battle. He would slaughter many before they dared to take him down. Oh, but it was such a good day to die.

The Monks advanced from the shadows, singing praise to Her Holiness for prey to slaughter in her name. They relished the scent of fear thickening the air. They longed to plunge their blades into the hearts of the heretics who dared stand in the way of Her Holiness's perfect will. They were of one heart in the matter: kill…kill….kill! All blasphemers would die.

Time ticked down.

The tipping point neared.

All of creation held its breath as the Monks raised their blades to strike.

Then a song of storm and fire filled the air.

Husbands covered their wives; soldiers dropped to the floor.

The Monks froze; captured by a mysterious power.

Golden light rushed through the hanger, banishing the darkness and bringing wave upon merciless wave of molten heat into the cold sorrow. The Monks howled unearthly howls that chilled the Children of Time to their very cores. Yet, the temporal avengers watched in horrified fascination as their attackers jerked this way and that; fighting the fire; succumbing to the song. The storm and fire and howls surged into a crescendo with the song. The base shook violently beneath their feet. The Monks arched in exquisite agony. And, as one, they dissolved into dust…

…a dust that drifted to the ground at the feet of the Golden Haired Bad Wolf.

The fire dwindled.

The storm quieted.

The song faded.

And Rose Tyler stumbled to her knees. One hand clutched her stomach; the other—that had been outstretched to execute her prey—pressed to the ground to an attempt to keep her upright. Her body trembled; her hair feel freely over her face; and her breath was ragged against the cold, unfeeling floor as she fought with everything she had to remain _focused._

All around her, she could feel the presence of the Children of Time; her friends; her family. They were surrounding her, kneeling beside her, calling her name, but she could barely hear their voices over the rushing in her ears. She closed her eyes against the white hot tears pouring down her cheeks. She needed to focus. She needed to stay in the present. She could not give in to the pull of the pathways. She had followed them. She had had no choice. When faced with a legion of the Silence without the protection of the TARDIS, she had given into the pull. Now, she fought to break free. She had to remain here, now; she had to _focus_ on preventing what happens next. Fire and ice and song and screams filled her soul; she bit back her cries of despair. It all hurt so badly, but she could not give in, not yet, not now; thus, she reached for the one thing that saved her. He always saved her. _Doctor!_

"Rose!" Mickey was holding her shoulders. "Rose! Rose? What's wrong? Rose, can you hear me?"

Martha was kneeling next to him; one hand against Rose's forehead; the other checking her pulse. "She's burning up. Her heart is racing."

"Rose! Please!" Mickey said, desperately.

"Amy," Rose gasped, finally lifting her head. Her eyes were narrowed; squinting in the twilight. "Amy."

"I'm here." Amy knelt between Martha and Mickey.

Rose reached for the hurting mother; clasping the back of Amy's neck, she drew the child near, whispering in ragged breaths, "We are going to get her back, Amy, I swear." Tears pricked in Amy's eyes. She tried to force them back, tried to be strong, but the pain was still too new. Rose released her, allowing her to stumble back into her husband's arms. There, she found her protection, her comfort, and her strength.

"Rose," Mickey said, relief in his voice. "Rose, what happened? What did you do?"

"Don't worry," the Commander of the Doctor's army said with an unsteady smile as she sat back on her heels. "I didn't hurt them. I just…" She grabbed Mickey's shoulder for support and took a few needed breaths. "I just killed them."

"You what?" Mickey asked in disbelief.

Rose shook her head. "We don't have time. Jack. I need Jack."

"Jack's not here," Rory said.

"Yeah," Martha added, her brow furrowed in concern. Rose was sweating and pale and her body was trembling uncontrollably. It was almost as if she were going into shock. "We lost contact with him before all this happened. Rose, you need to lay back."

The doctor tried to gently push her back, but Rose swatted her hands away. "I need Jack." With a defiant will, Rose surged to her feet and stumbled into the shadows. Her wrist rose to her lips. She could hear it; _tick tick tick_. They were running out of time. She needed to move quickly. She closed her eyes. _Doctor…_

From behind her, in a time and reality that was slipping from her grasp, Rory watched, his heart sinking with each passing second. He heard her voice whispering to him from times past, a cruel commentary to the truth he saw unfolding before his eyes. _"…all of us have drunk deep impossibility and emerged altered." _His mind did not comprehend what was happening; his heart did. Somehow he knew that today, in this very hour, the Rose Tyler he knew was disappearing and there was nothing he could do about it. Thus, he tightened his hold on his wife and watched and waited and hoped and prayed.

Rose licked her lips. She was so hot. _Doctor, it _hurts_!_ "Jack, come in."

Silence. It stretched on for too long.

_Tick. Tick. Tick._

The Children of Time waited with baited breath for an answer from the last member of their team who had yet to be found.

Rose kept her eyes firmly shut; her mind focused on _him_.

Time was running out…

Static. Then…

"_Rose! Thank God!"_

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Jack slumped over the consul of the _Fancy_, relief relieving the burden that had weighed him down since his arrival on the pirate ship. He had appeared in the last place he had jumped, shocking Captain Avery and his men who had just completed their mission of delivering the injured soldier of Her Holiness to a hospital. Once the immortal captain had taken in several gulping breaths, he ordered Captain Avery in no uncertain terms to return to Demon's Run.

Now, what felt an eternity later, he could relax. Rose was alive. She was safe. "I cannot tell how good it is to hear your voice, Commander."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

A tear slipped through her clenched eyelids and a smile broke through her pain. "Yeah," she gasped. "Same here."

"_Where are you?"_ her dearest friend asked. _"What about the others? Is everyone alright?"_

"Everyone's fine," Rose said; the tears coming stronger; adding to the strain in her voice.

"_We're on our way. We're coming to get you."_

Rose shook her head. The tears would not stop, and she could not afford the mental power to stop them. "There's no time."

Below, deep down in the bowels of the base, a telltale rumbling began.

Rose drew in a deep breath. Their time was almost up. One minute. That was all she had.

"Listen to me, Jack, and listen well. You do not have time to get back. But that's ok."

"_Wait, what do you mean? Rose!"_

"Just shut up and listen to me!" Rose said. "The base is going to self-destruct."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The blood drained from Jack's face. "Ok," he said, thinking quickly. "Then…I'll jump in. I'll come and get you! Just tell me where you are!"

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Rose shook her head again. "There's no time. Now, listen to me Jack and do not argue! We don't have time. I need you to activate your manipulator, can you do that? Just turn it on and synchronize it to my communicator. Quick, k?"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Jack moved to do as she said, fear gripping the edges of his heart. "Rose, what are you planning?"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Through the pain and the haze and the heat and fire, Rose chanced opening her eyes. The little bit of light left in the room hurt her abused orbs and the tears blurred her vision, yet she drank in what she saw. Rory and Amy; Mickey and Martha; Strax and that brave soldier from the Gamma Forest who defied her orders to save the Doctor's family; she wanted them to be the last thing she saw. "I've got to get everyone out, Jack."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Jack's fingers froze over the manipulator. "Rose," he began.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Rose closed her eyes; the pain rushing in, threatening to steal her focus and to drown her in despair. "You have to protect them now."

"_Rose."_

" Make sure everyone gets home, ok?"

"_Rose!"_

Rose smiled. The rumbling was growing louder.

Time was up.

"Goodbye, Jack."

"_ROSE!"_

Rose's communicator beeped, signaling the completion of the synchronization.

Something exploded below them.

The force of the blast rushed through the floors. The hanger shook and groaned as the shockwaves hit. The Children of Time looked around in confusion and rising fear.

All except for Rory. He watched Rose, her warning echoing through his heart and mind. _"Leave…before it destroys you."_

Rose breathed deep; filling her lung one last time with the cold air of her reality and preparing herself for what needed to be done. The blasts were moving through the decks. The fires would reach them in seconds. She did not have time to teleport them all out. They would burn before she could.

A final tear fell from her eyes as she dropped her head back and raised her arms. This was the only way.

_Doctor…_

She opened her soul to the pathways of blood and battle.

The howl of time unleashed filled her mind. Fire followed in its wake. It burned through her heart, mind, her soul; all of time raged inside of her, granting her the power to change everything. She would have precious seconds before the fate of the one who looked recklessly into the Heart of Time fell.

She saw the fires of death—the final trap of Madam Kovarian—rushing upwards to meet them.

She saw her family crouching on the ground in fear.

She saw the loyal centurion watching her with sorrowful understanding.

She saw it all and infinitely more.

Yet, now was not the time to indulge memories of a past that was no longer hers. The pain was acute; the fire was all consuming. And it _burned!_

"_Doctor!" _her soul screamed as she unleashed the power of the Bad Wolf.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Far, far away in unfeeling darkness, a spark of life illuminated the TARDIS.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Rose forced the power of the time vortex down. It collided with the fires of the blast; slowing them down just enough, just enough…

"_Rose, don't!" he pleaded with her in a time long ago. "You're going to burn!"_

_Doctor…_She bit back a sob.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

A second pulse. A third. Like a heartbeat battling again death, the TARDIS began to awaken.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

No matter how powerful she became, she could not stop time.

And the longer she remained open, the faster it consumed her.

She pulled at the tendrils of energy and thrust them toward her family. She wrapped them each in a protect embrace, pouring her love for them into each strand as she tied them together.

"_Not you," he swore to her in the street of London; he swore he would never forget her. "Never you!"_

_Please, Doctor…_

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

"_...please…"_

The Doctor sat up, jolted out of his despair by the sound of her voice.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The destruction of the base pushed against her shields.

Time bucked against her control.

It demanded to run its course.

Rose pulled at the strands, begging for one second more.

She cast her mind to the cosmos, searching, searching, searching…

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The TARDIS sang with urgency. The Doctor scrambled to his feet, latching onto the controls and pulling levers and cranks and running as fast as he could around the column. He had to get back. He _had to get back!_

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

There!

Jack, on the _Fancy_, screaming into the communicator, begging her to come home.

Her control was slipping. The pain was winning.

"…_if this is my last chance to say it." He hesitated. "Rose Tyler—"_

"_Doctor!" _she sobbed as she threw the strands to the ship.

She was out of time.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

"ROSE!"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

All of time and space held its breath in disbelief as the impenetrable fortress known as Demon's Run exploded into nothingness.

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The deck of the _Fancy_ was silent, her crew unable to utter even a sound in response to the tragedy that had played out over their communicator.

Jack stood over the consul. His face was pale. His eyes were wide. Tear stained his cheeks. He could not believe it. He _refused_ to believe it. This was not happening. This. Was. NOT. Happening! Rose was not dead. She could not be dead. She wouldn't die.

The door to the bridge _whooshed_ open suddenly, admitting the furious Amelia Pond. Her hair billowed out behind her as she stormed in; her eyes flashed with anger; her lips were tight with determination. Shoving past Jack, she slammed the communicator. "Rose! Rose! Come in! Rose!"

"She's…"Jack didn't want to say it. He swallowed hard, took a deep breath, and tried again. "She's not there."

"Shut up," Amy said. "Don't say that."

Rory stood back with the Mickey and Martha, watching his wife with deep sadness. "Amy."

"No!" Amy snapped. "Don't. Don't you dare say anything." She pounded the button again. "Rose! Come. In!"

Jack placed his hand over hers. "You need to stop."

"No!" Amy shrieked this time. She pulled her hand away and pointed her finger accusingly in his face. "Do not! Don't you dare! Don't you DARE make me believe that I lost ANYONE ELSE today!"

"Amy." Rory pulled her into his arms.

"No!" the young woman sobbed. "No! No! No!" She broke down, there, on the deck, and screamed out her pain. "Melody! Rose! No!"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

_She stood in the doorway, her eyes locked with his; understanding passed between them. _

_Then, the Doctor's Ganger pulled her into a hug and whispered fiercely into her ear, "I meant what he said on Bad Wolf Bay."_

_The bunker beneath the castle faded. Cold wind whipped past her as she stood on that unfeeling beach faced with a choice she never wanted to make. Her Doctor. A man who was not her Doctor. One would leave her. One would stay. She turned her watering eyes to the one who was not her own and asked, "What about you, Doctor?"_

_He brushed back her hair and whispered three words…_

"_Awaken, my heart."_

Familiar heat—not wild, not consuming, not _burning_—wrapped around her mind and pulled her back into that embrace of protection and love. Rose could feel herself sinking into her body. Her chest rose and fell with the intact of fresh air. Her skin tingled against the glass floor. And her eyes fluttered open to see…

…the TARDIS. Her TARDIS.

She sank back in relief. She was alive!

"Rose?" the Doctor appeared from behind the consul. "Rose!"

Rose sat up as he came bounding toward her. He knelt down in front of her and reached for her, utter joy radiating off of him in unguarded waves. "Rose, you're—"

She slapped him.

His head snapped around. He fell back on his rear; one hand pressed against his cheek; and turned back to face in her disbelief.

Rose's eyes were narrowed as she said, "That was for leaving."

The Doctor gaped at her. "I didn't want to."

The anger in her eyes dissolved and was replaced with a despair he had not seen since…since… "Which time?" she asked.

Since Bad Wolf Bay.

The Doctor sat up and tried to reach for her again. "Rose."

She pulled away, turning her back to him as she pushed herself to her feet. "Not now, Doctor," she said simply, disappearing behind the mask of Commander Tyler. She unzipped her jacket, removed a strip of cloth and laid it on the consul, and stripped out of her coat to throw it over the chair as she moved around the beloved machine, her fingers drifting over the consul. "We have work to do. We need to rescue Melody."

The Doctor watched her go. His hearts sank. It was as if all the time they had spent now was for not. She was gone again, leaving in her wake a cold silence that ate at his soul. But he would do what he did best. He would bury the pain and move forward. Because she was right. Melody Pond needed them. Standing up, he followed her, saying, "They would have taken her to earth. They would need to raise her there."

"I know," Rose said. "They did."

The Doctor noted the cloth. It was a Gamma Forest Prayer Leaf. Where Rose had picked that up in an army base, he would never know. He flipped the leaf over. It was the perfect distraction. He did love the Gamma Forest. The people there were so peaceful. "The girl in the spacesuit," he said, adding to the conversation.

"Exactly." Rose began to type in the coordinates.

The Doctor smirked to himself. "Well, then, back to Florida, then? 1969. Where it all started."

"July 21st," Rose said. "The day after."

"Well," the Doctor mumbled to himself. "Alons-y."

A moment later, he was gaping. Then, he was smiling. "Rose?" He jumped around the consul to her side. "Where did you get this?" He waved the prayer leaf in front of her face.

Rose glanced at it and then went back to her work. "Amy's prison."

"Did you read it?" he asked.

"No, of course I didn't," Rose said, finally looking up at him with pure irritation. She did not want to talk to him. Not right not. She was angry and happy and hurt and excited and a plethora of other emotions that warred for her attention; all she wanted to do was throw herself into the next mission so she would not have to think about how or what or why she felt because of _him_. "I can't read the language—" She look at the leaf. Her eyes went wide.

And the Doctor continued to grin.

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

The Children of Time sat in the hanger trying, in their own ways, to recover from the day. Martha sat with Amy, examining her and trying to offer what comfort she could. Rory stood with Jack and Mickey, trying to help them cope with the loss of their oldest and dearest friend. Lorna did her best to be of help, but as she was an ex-enemy, she could do little save stand by and wait. Strax, for his part, did not make an effort to complain.

All were wondering the same thing. What next? Rose was dead. The Doctor was missing. And the Silence had Melody. None of them knew where or even when they had her. They did not have the luxury of jumping through time willy nilly searching. Thus, they sat. They watched. And they waited.

Then, a crackle of static pierced the air, followed by…

"_Jack, come in."_

The Children of Time froze. None of them wanted to believe…

"_Jack?"_

With a rush of elation and joy, Jack raised his manipulator to his lips, but before he could speak, Amy wrenched his arm away to scream into the device, "ROSE TYLER, YOU HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE HUMAN BEING! HOW DARE YOU DO THAT! I SWEAR, NEXT TIME I SEE, I AM GOING TO KILL YOU!"

Rory pulled his wife back, freeing Jack's arm and allowing the immortal to respond to his now laughing and very much alive commander. He steadied his nerves and reigned in the rise of his temper before speaking. "Rose."

"_Hey Jack."_

"You're alive."

"_Yep."_

"How?"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

From the TARDIS, the Doctor stole the microphone to declare, "I swooped in to save the day."

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"Doctor!" Amy reached for Jack's arm again. The Captain stepped back and cradled his wrist over dramatically. Amy scowled at him.

Jack smiled and returned to the conversation. "Ah, Doctor, glad you could join us."

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The Doctor grinned. "You know me; always arriving at the last second."

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Jack rolled his eyes. "You were cutting it a bit close this time."

There was a long pause before the Doctor answered. _"I know."_

Jack released a calming breath before looking around. "We're on the _Fancy. _All of us. Safe and sound, Rose. You did it."

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Rose smiled, relieved. "Good."

"_We'll clear a place for you to land," _Jack said.

"No," Rose said.

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"What?" Jack asked, confused. "Rose, what—"

"_You're orders remain. Take everyone home."_

"Home?" Amy reiterated. "No! Doctor, we need to go find Melody!"

"_We'll find your daughter, Amy, I promise." _Rose assured her.

"But, how do you know where to look? And why can't we come along?"

"_Amy,"_ the Doctor cut in. _"Trust us. We'll find her and bring her safely back to you. Rory the Roman, where are you?"_

Rory stepped up to the conversation. "Here I am."

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"Rory!" the Doctor greeted jovially. "Quick memory question for you, and don't worry if it hurts when you answer, the question may be tough." He grinned, knowing Rory was rolling his eyes. "What is the only water in the forest?"

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"The only water in the forest?" Amy asked, confused. "What does that have to do with anything?"

But Rory knew. He remembered. "The river."

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The Doctor's smile grew. "The River."

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"There is no word for Pond in the language of the forest." All eyes turned to Lorna. She was looking at the communicator. Slowly, she stepped forward, a small smile playing on her lips. "Doctor?" she asked. "Is that really you?"

"_Yes, hello. Who is this?"_

Lorna looked down bashfully. "Lorna, sir. Lorna Bucket. We met in the Gamma Forest, but I don't suspect you remember."

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The Doctor, for his part, looked surprised and a bit trapped. "No!" he denied. "No, Lorna, of course I remember you. I remember everyone!" He looked to Rose for help. She shrugged and waved him on. He frowned, as if to say "Thanks a lot!" and turned back to the conversation. "We ran, right Lorna? Didn't we run?"

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Lorna laughed. "Yes, we did. Doctor, do you have the prayer leaf? The one I made for Amy?"

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

"Ah, you made this," the Doctor praised into the system. He lifted the leave to admire it in a new light. "Wonderful craftsmanship. I always say the people of the Gamma Forest know how to sew. Perhaps you would like to translate the name of Melody Pond into the language of your people."

**THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE! THIS IS A BREAK IN THE SCENE!**

Lorna nodded and turned to Amy and Rory. "The name of your daughter translates from the language of my people from Melody Pond to River Song."

Silence descended upon the group. "What?" Amy whispered. "What did you say?"

Lorna blinked up at her, not understanding the confusion. "River Song. Is that…ok?"

Amy gasped and turned to Rory, tears filling her eyes anew.

Through the silence, the Doctor spoke, _"We _will_ find your daughter, Amy. I promise."_

* * *

><p><em><em>**AN: And so concludes Demon's Run. This is not the end of this story. _Of Blood and Battle_ continues on through "Let's Kill Hitler." And things are just going to get even better from here. Get ready, because here we go!**


	10. Let's Call the Doctor

**AN: Hello. Welcome to the Repost of the Second Half of _Of Blood and Battle._ I hope you enjoy this newer version.**

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Ten: Let's Call the Doctor

Three months. Three months of nothing. Three months of searching, of seeking, and finding nothing. Three months running here and there; three months of tracking leads seemingly everywhere; three months of trying to keep this one promise. The Doctor knew, though, deep down, in his hearts, that no matter what he did or how hard he tried, he would never be able to keep this promise. Why could he? How could he? He was the Doctor. He promised many things and never delivered when it counted the most; so why should he now keep this most important promise?

The Doctor stood at the TARDIS console. He was lost in his melancholy. There were many things weighing on his mind; these last three months were the easiest thing on which to focus. It kept his mind from the impending threat of Kovarian and the Silence still out there somewhere plotting. It kept his mind off the girl in the spacesuit that he was failing. It kept his mind off the phantom of Rose Tyler hiding somewhere in the TARDIS –escaping him in the only way she knew. Yes, the most recent futility of his life kept his mind occupied enough to move forward; and, of course, to ignore the constant ringing of the telephone.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

"Damn it," Amy hissed as she hung up the phone. She was standing in the kitchen of her parent's old home which now served as her and Rory's house. It was midmorning; she and Rory had just finished breakfast. It had become routine for them. They had a routine, developed in the last three months of normalcy, which had almost helped her cope with the loss of her daughter. Almost was the operative word; it was what drove her, two weeks into this normalcy, to call the Doctor every morning in hopes of getting some semblance of news. Three months to the day and still nothing. She glared at the old phone as if it were to blame and then slumped into her seat at the table, reporting, "He isn't answering."

Rory had run out of reasons why the Doctor was ignoring them and simply took Amy's hand and squeezed it. Amy looked at him with watery eyes and did her best to smile.

"Jack will have some news," Rory assured her. The Captain had been staying with them ever since Demon's Run. He had taken his orders to keep them safe very seriously. The house was practically brimming with alien technology. If even the smallest interstellar threat descended on them, the alarm system would activate. Thankfully, all had remained quiet.

"And if he doesn't," Amy said with a sigh, "There is always plan CC."

Rory nodded in reply.

The door opened. Jack trudged in looking worse for wear. His hair was mussed, his clothes were singed, and he looked ready to fall over from exhaustion. Still, he greeted the Ponds with a weak smile. "Morning."

"Jack," Amy greeted. She stood to hug the legendary soldier while Rory moved to get him a needed cup of coffee.

Jack sat at the table with a grateful groan and accepted the coffee. He took three long gulps. The Ponds watched him anxiously. He took his time setting the mug on the table before leaning forward, his elbows on his knees, and saying heavily, "I'm sorry."

Their disappointment was palatable. Amy sat back in her chair and began the familiar battle of keeping her despair in check. Rory slumped his shoulders but rallied enough to place a hand on Jack's shoulder and give it a comradic squeeze. "Thanks," he said, and he meant it. Jack had done all he could to find some hint at their daughter's whereabouts. For a man of over 500 years old, he had a fair few connections and favors to call in; he had done all he could and they could ask no more of him. "Why, uh, why don't you go get some sleep," Rory advised.

"Yes sir," Jack said with a grateful smile. He hesitated a moment, his eyes on Amy, but took the nurse's suggestion and pulled his tired body up the stairs to his room.

Once the door shut, Rory said, "Come on." He took Amy's hand and led her to the front door.

"Where we going?" Amy asked as Rory handed her her shoes and jacket.

Rory grabbed his car keys from a bowl on the table in the foyer, pocketed them, and said, "It's time for operation CC."

Amy smiled a true smile for the first time in three months. She put her shoes on as quickly as she could and followed her husband out the front door.

They did not notice, in their hurry, the back door opening.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

Mels scowled as she short-circuited the alarm system. It was something of a necessary evil now that that Captain had moved in with her parents. She had been lucky the day she had discovered the system. No one had been home. She had nearly been disintegrated by a Trovalian laser grid. She could not remember the last time she had had so much fun; however, if she wanted to keep visitation rights with her oblivious mum and dad and remain incognito, she needed to disable the system before it detected her less-than-human DNA. She rolled her eyes at the inconvenience, closed the main circuit panel, and skipped to the back door. It would only take a moment to pick the lock...and done! She opened the door with a hearty, "Hello!"

The kitchen was empty. "Odd," she muttered. She was certain her parents would be finishing breakfast right about now. Their routine had become so predictable it was mundane. Dear old dad would have been off to the Hospital and mum would spend the day fretting about waiting for word from the Doctor. Mels would spend the day gleaning information about the recent events and giddily counting down the days until the Doctor's arrival. It would have to be soon. She was certain it would be soon. Her true love would not keep her waiting much longer, surely! Until then, she would be patient and enjoy her twenty-year vacation.

Mels looked around the kitchen and the living room and determined that something had driven her parents away in a hurry. A thrill rose within her. Maybe it was the Doctor! She spun in delight. She knew he would not keep her waiting. Oh, she could hardly wait. If he was, indeed, here, then she would be able to express her love to him. She had the perfect plan and knew just how to begin.

There was a still-warm coffee mug on the table. Mels picked it up and sniffed it. "Mmmm," she hummed. "The Captain is here." She grinned at the thought. Captain Jack Harkness. She had had to be very careful around him; so much so, in fact, that she had avoided him completely. He would have seen through her in moments. He was very perceptive like that. Ancient creatures always were. Now that the Doctor may be near, she did not need to be so cautious. She placed the mug in the sink and, with a sly smirk, slinked up the stairs to find her prey.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

Jack rarely slept soundly. Being as old as he was and having seen all he had seen, he often had nightmares. A man of memories and demons could hope for little else when sleeping, thus, when he fell into his bed and slipped almost instantly into oblivion, it was a nice surprise to dream of something other than death and loss.

He dreamt of River. He dreamt of her smile and of her curls and of her laughter. He dreamt of the brief moments they had shared while searching for the girl in the spacesuit. He dreamt of the kiss they shared in her prison cell—their first goodbye. He dreamt of the times they would have together one day.

The dreams were ethereal and light and changed swiftly; a blur almost to his fatigued mind. One dream, however, began to solidify into stark detail. They were sitting in a field. The grass was long and swayed around them. It created a barrier that hid them from the world. He pulled River close and ran his hands through her hair. She smiled down at him, whispering things he could not hear for the wind carried away her voice. She traced her fingers over his chin and cheek to his hair and down again to his chest and his arms. Her touch was so soft and intimate and strangely...real.

She grabbed his wrist...

...and Jack woke up.

There was a young black girl sitting on top of him; her right hand was gripping his wrist—right on top of the Vortex Manipulator. She grinned down at him like the Cheshire Cat and purred almost as sinisterly, "Well, you're a light sleeper."

Jack's training took over before his mind, and in moments, he and his mystery girl were scuffling for the Vortex Manipulator. For a slight young thing, she had quite a grip. They tumbled out of the bed, which elicited a laugh from her and a groan from his aching muscles. He found his feet and stood. She allowed him to pull her up in the process. They danced about the room; jerking this way and that until he finally twisted and pinned her to the wall. The battle had lasted a mere few second and had driven the fatigue from his mind. Head clear, he looked down at her, and demanded, "Who are you and what the hell do you think you are doing?"

The stranger's grin never left her face. She had very much enjoyed their battle and was unafraid to let him know. "Well I'm certainly not that River person you were moaning for in your sleep," she said with a coy wink. "Name's Mels and I want that." She indicated the manipulator with a nod of her head.

Jack frowned at her. This girl was ballsy, he'd give her that. Impertinent and in over her head. "Mels," he said, and she nodded with a pleased smile. Jack stepped back, hoping to create space, but she had her hand locked around his wrist and would not let go. He frowned at her. "This is not for sale."

"I wasn't intending to buy it, Captain," she purred.

The use of his title put him on alert. "This is a dangerous device," he said. The alarm had not activated meaning she was not a threat, but his instincts were telling him otherwise. He took another step back. She stepped with him. "It is not a toy for little girls."

Mels' smile broadened at that. "Oh, I'm not a _little girl_, Captain," she assured him. "And I do so _love_ dangerous things." Quickly and without warning, she pulled him forward with strength no one her build should have, raised his arm, and smashed the activation button on the manipulator. In a flash, they were gone.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

"Left," Amy instructed.

Rory wrenched the wheel left.

"Ok, right," Amy said as she turned the paper in her hands, trying to keep a clear picture in her mind of what they were doing.

Rory turned the car again. It crashed through more towering stalks of the corn field chosen to host operation CC. After not hearing from the Doctor, the Ponds had devised several unorthodox plans designed to summon a person who could travel throughout time and space. After much deliberation, it was decided that operation CC was the most cost effective and practical, thus, here they were, driving through a field. Who could blame them? They were desperate. They were focused.

They were about to run over the TARDIS.

Rory slammed the breaks. The small car skidded across the flattened field to stop a mere foot from the smirking Doctor. Before the Last Centurion and the Girl Who Waited could exit their car, the Doctor held up a copy of the next day's newspaper. "Crop circles?" he chided. "Really?"

The picture on the front page was an aerial view of their completed project. In large, car-created letters, they had spelled out DOCTOR for the entire universe to see.

"You could answer you phone," Rory said with mild annoyance.

"Doctor," Amy said breathlessly as she enveloped him in a quick hug. She pulled back and looked up at him anxiously. "It's been three months. Where's our daughter?"

The Doctor had not been looking forward to this. It was evident in his expression. How was he to tell two of the people he loved most that he had failed? "Permission, commander?" he asked.

"Granted," Rory said with a curt nod.

The Doctor pulled Amy into a more intimate embrace, whispering, "I'm so sorry, Amy. We tried, but…" He pulled back so he was addressing both of them. "We couldn't find Melody."

Amy stepped back. She shook her head in denial; however, before the shock and sorrow could sink in, a loud crack and a flash of electric light broke their moment. Three heads turned in time to see Jack fall hard to the ground on the other side of the large "O." Rory was the first to recover. He led the charge to Jack's side, calling his name in surprise. The young nurse grabbed the old Captain's shoulder in concern. "Hey, mate, you alright?"

Jack groaned as he pushed himself up, revealing that he was not alone.

Rory stepped back.

Amy gasped.

The Doctor paled.

And Jack panted on the ground as he said, "I found your daughter."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I was reading through <em>Unwritten <em>and _Of Blood and Battle_, and I realized something: I loved both stories all the way up to "Let's Kill Hitler." Then, I would stop reading. I have to admit it; it was not my best work. So, I decided to rewrite the ending. I do hope you enjoy it. I feel it will work better with the storyline as a whole and will be more reflective of the _Doctor Who _universe. I hope you enjoy it. Reviews, as always, are love. **


	11. Let's Try Not to Die

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Eleven: Let's Try Not to Die

_"Please," he pleaded with her. "Tell me what you want."_

_ Rose sighed heavily. They had been having this argument for far too long. She needed him to understand. Turning away from the window of her office, Rose looked at the Metacrisis with compassion in her eyes. "I want you to leave."_

_ The devastation on his face was heart breaking, but Rose would not take back the truth; however, before he could turn away in abject despair, she took his hand and forced him to look at her. She needed him to understand her heart. "He left us," she said. "He. LEFT. Us."_

_ "Rose," the Metacrisis began, but she shook her head, silencing him. She had heard his reasons. The Doctor did it so they could have the life he could never give her. She got it; she did; but he did not. _

_ "You are not the Doctor," she started again, and again, he tried to correct her, but she was swift to stop him once more. "And I don't want you to be." The Metacrisis paused, shocked, unable to understand what she meant. "The Doctor left us here expecting us to do exactly as he said. He has a bad habit of thinking he can dictate how we live our lives." The Metacrisis could not help but to agree. Rose took a deep breath. This was harder than she expected, but it needed to be done. "I don't want to live the life he thinks I should have. I want to live my life. I want you to live yours."_

_ "But Rose, we can," the Metacrisis insisted. "We can live our lives together."_

_ Rose shook her head. She gave him a sad smile and said the truth. "No we can't." She squeezed his hand in encouragement as she finished, "Because we don't know how. I...I have to come to terms with the fact that I will never see him again. I need to know who Rose Tyler is without the Doctor. And you need to know who you are—not as something born from him but as you. I want you to leave so we can discover who we are."_

_ The Metacrisis looked at her with a sense of shock and awe. His expression then melted into a smile, for he knew she was right. "Rose Tyler," he said softly. "Oh, how I love you."_

_ The office surrounding them wavered and shifted and changed. It was not frightening or shocking; it was the nature of dreams. The white office walls of Torchwood Tower morphed into ancient stone walls. Sunlight faded into darkness. The Metacrisis became the Doctor's Ganger. Rose found herself once more facing him in his final moments. He would sacrifice himself to save the real Doctor, but, before he did, he pulled her into a hug and whispered, "I meant what he said on Bad Wolf Bay."_

_ Words from a time that dissolved in the Cracks echoed through the air—words whispered by the Metacrisis but never by her Doctor. "I love you."_

_ Tear pricked in Rose's eyes as the embrace of the Ganger disappeared. The castle hallway disappeared. Everything disappeared into white-hot nothingness. The screams of the Silence filled her mind, and, just before her dream broke, Rose saw the Doctor kissing River Song; and over the scene was Kovarian's taunting words, "...return to a master who does not want it." _

Rose awoke with a jerk. She was sitting in the captain's chair in the console room of the old TARDIS. She looked around for a moment, uncertain if this was the dream or her reality. The familiar warmth of Idris brushed her mind, soothing her fear, and she knew she was awake. With a groan, she leaned forward until her elbows were on her knees and her head was cradled in her hands. She needed to breathe. She needed to calm the rapid beating of her heart and clear the whirlwind of emotion in her mind.

She had been fighting with herself for three months. The battle had been the strength of the Commander verses the broken heart of Rose Tyler. She had traveled the pathways of past and future born of blood and battle. It had saved her life, but it had emptied her soul. She was hollow; a phantom of what she once was. She knew it. It was not hard to see. The spirit and fire of the once shop girl was gone. The cool authority of the Commander was gone. She did not have anything with which to define herself, for it all had been ripped away, leaving her empty and cold and alone.

_"Not alone," _Idris whispered to her. The TARDIS had been there trying so hard to heal her, but Rose was resistant even to that. She did not want to be the Heart of the TARDIS. She did not want to be the Bad Wolf. Not anymore. She never thought she would even want this, but she wanted to leave. She did not want to see the Doctor ever again. Here, in the TARDIS, she felt trapped.

She could not leave. The pathways had done more than show her the truth; it had awakened in her a power like none she had experienced. The Vortex was alive and active within her. It was a greater threat than the Silence would ever be, for now, if she ever left the TARDIS or the Doctor, she would burn. She would dissolve into time itself. She had to remain near so the TARDIS could protect her. She could never leave him. Once upon a time, that would have been a dream come true. Now it was a nightmare.

"_Oh, my Heart," _Idris whispered to her. _"Do not believe such deceit."_

"What deceit?" Rose whispered as she turned in the chair. She hid her face from the beautiful machine, unable to bear the weight of her shame. She knew her fate now. She knew her punishment. She could never escape it.

"_Your future is not what you think."_

"Is it not?" Rose replied with a bitter laugh. "You saw it. You saw...you knew."

"_He needs you, my Heart."_

Tear brimmed in her eyes at Idris' sincerity; however, it only deepened the hollow ache in her soul. Idris could hope for things that may never happen, but Rose could not. She knew what was coming. She knew the truth. The Doctor would leave her again, and this time, she would be forced to watch.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

Jack had found the Pond's daughter. He would have to calculate the odds of Melody Pond succeeding in keeping herself secret from him, the Doctor, and Rose only to be exposed by the Justice Department Extraction Team after she randomly jumped him and her into the middle of their mission later. Right now, he was simply trying to escape with both their lives intact.

He had heard of the Justice Department, but he had never encountered them. He would admit that they were rather clever; traveling about in human-sized ships that could shape-shift into whatever humanoid creature they wished. It was even impressive to see a crew of tiny people making this ship run. What was the most impressive, if not morbidly so, was the security system. The antibodies would kill anyone—even the crew—if they did not have the right authority. Authority was a wrist band that was currently strapped to his and Mels' arms. They had been given them when the Justice Department had accepted them as guests. The wrist bands had glowed green, indicating friendly. Now, the wrist bands were glowing red, indicating threat; the result, he and Mels running for their lives through this ship-person, trying to reach the eye, where they would, hopefully, manage an escape.

"Watch yourself!" Jack snapped as an antibody almost reached Mels.

Melody rolled her eyes and ducked under the stingers. She shot the antibody at close range, cutting off the mechanical command to _"Stay calm while your death is implemented."_ "I don't need your help."

"You should have thought of that before you jumped us here!" He pulled her behind him. He had lost count of how many antibodies he had shot down, but still more were coming. His gun was burning from overuse. His palm was blistering from the heated metal. He hissed as the lasers pierced another silver shell.

Melody dropped to her knees behind him, taking out a surge of reinforcements as she scoffed, "Things would have gone smoother if you had cooperated."

Jack turned to her just as she stood up. "Vortex Manipulators are dangerous!" He shot another antibody. "And this is why!"

Melody smirked at him as she asked, "Would you have given it to me had you known my true identity?"

They stood toe to toe, face to face, and eye to eye. For a moment, it was just them and no one else, and his eyes narrowed dangerously on hers. He was torn between his anger at this unpredictable child who stank of disrupted time and the memories of the brave warrior she would become; the warrior he was promised to love. It had been a shock to learn her true identity. This ship—the Teselecta—had discovered what no one else had. Mels, an old friend of Amy and Rory's, was actually Melody Pond, their long-lost daughter and, apparently, a wanted criminal.

"Melody Pond!"

The security force of the Teselecta had arrived. They needed to move. Adopting the form of his fellow immortal, Jack took Melody by the hand and ran down the corridor, ignoring the cries of "Halt!" and "Stop in the name of—"

They reached the elevator. Melody made short work of the control panel, and, with antibodies and security bearing down upon them, they ducked into the tube and escaped.

Only now that they were safely sealed away did Jack allow himself a moment's respite. He holstered his gun, allowing his curse to heal his hand, and leaned against the wall to take some much needed deep breaths.

Melody, for her part, was taking being chased down by murderous machines and over ambitious soldiers all too well. She let out a whoop of laughter and turned her devious smile on him as she fiddled with the wrist bands so naively strapped to their arms upon their arrival. "This day just keeps getting better," she remarked as she tinkered with the Authority.

"You call nearly being killed 'getting better'?," Jack asked.

"Yeah!" Melody replied. She was bored with the wrist band and opted to lean against the wall with her arms crossed. "Wouldn't you?"

"No. Near death experiences are not something I would chalk up as a good time."

"They are if you let them be," Melody said with that coy smile twisting her lips again.

Jack's dark mood did not budge. "What did they do to you?"

"Beats me," Melody said with a shrug. "Memories a bit wonky. You know, comes with being part Time Lord. I forget things."

"Like who you killed to get us into this mess?"

"Oh no," Melody corrected. "I remember everyone I've killed."

That statement caused Jack to pause; his eyes widening just slightly at the flippant tone she had used to deliver that bit of news. "How many people have you killed?"

"Plenty," Mels replied in the same tone. "No one important. At least, I don't think they were important. Not important enough for this." She waved her hand about the elevator. "No, I'm certain I would know if I killed someone that important."

"How can you be so flippant about death?"

"I'm a psychopath," Melody said with a shrug. "And you are an immortal. What do you care about death?"

Jack gaped at her. What had the Silence _done_? "I need to get you back to your parents."

"Yes, officer," Melody scoffed. They lapsed into a momentary silence. In that time, Melody's good mood seemed to simmer. She eyed the Captain over with a frown and said, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you weren't appreciative of this little adventure." Jack did not react to her taunt. Mels rolled her eyes and muttered, "The Doctor would have liked it."

"The Doctor would do the same—hold on." He faced her fully, confusion clear in his ancient eyes. "What do you mean the Doctor would have liked this?"

Melody's grin grew; Jack's discomfort increased. "I know _all_ about the Doctor," she purred as she stood and sauntered over to him. "My mummy told me all about him."

"Amy?" Jack clarified, his brows furrowing in thought.

Melody nodded. "No one else believed her when she told them about the Doctor, but I knew. I've always known. And I've been waiting, you see, for the right time to tell my mum and dad that I'm here and that I'm ready!"

"Ready for what?" Jack snorted. He did not like Melody like this. He had expected them to save her as a child. He had expected Amy and Rory to raise their daughter. That made sense to him, knowing who she would become. This girl before him was baffling, irritating, and diminishing his hopes. He needed to get her to Amy and Rory as quickly as he could. Maybe, just maybe, whatever the Silence did to her could be fixed.

"To marry the Doctor."

Jack looked up at her in shock.

Melody was completely serious.

The elevator dinged.

Whatever complications this little revelation would bring to their future would have to wait.

The doors opened, and all hell broke loose.

They tore through the wall of antibodies and soldiers waiting for them; their goal: the eye. If they could get the eye shield open, it would unblock the connection between his vortex manipulator and the time stream. He could get them home. Just a few feet more…

Melody gasped.

Jack turned in shock, his gun firing on instinct. The antibody that was on her exploded, but it was too late. Pain-filled dark eyes looked up at him for just a moment before she slumped forward.

"No!" Jack cried. He lunged forward to grab her before she could hit the ground.

Melody trembled in his arms; her breathing was shallow and labored; and a cold sheen of sweat covered her skin. "That's…not fair," she whispered.

"It's ok," Jack said. "It's going to be ok." He looked up, frantic, trying to salvage their plan. He was only a few steps from the eye. The antibodies and soldiers were advancing. He needed to move fast. Hoisting her up over his shoulder, he fired into the fray, driving back the humans and keeping the machines at bay, all the while inching his way to the eye.

"I'm supposed...supposed to marry the...Doctor," she gasped.

Jack could not help the scowl that pulled at his lips. "Always the Doctor."

"Why not?" Mels chuckled then coughed. "He's…he's…"

_Not coming to the rescue_, Jack thought, but he was and he could. Right here and right now, _he_ could save Melody Pond.

He shot down two advancing antibodies, holstered his gun, and made to make a break for the eye.

A golden heat pulsed over his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks. He knew this energy.

"Oh dear," Melody whispered, that mischievous lilt returning to her voice. "Best put me down, Captain. This could get ugly."

Impulse overrode thought, and Jack found himself doing exactly what she said. He sat her on the ground against the wall and stepped back. Shock was clearly written on his face as he watched the golden energy crawl over her skin. "You're…you're…"

Melody quirked an eyebrow. "Regenerating?" She smirked. "Yeah. Comes with being part Time Lord. Muddled brain and so many lives." She pushed herself to her feet. "But I thought you already knew that."

Jack's reply was cut off when the energy burst from her body. He covered his face as the force threw him back. All around him, he could hear antibodies short circuiting and soldiers screaming in fear. The entire ship shook with the power of her transformation.

And then, as quickly as it started, it was over.

Jack opened his eyes and sat up; the only human left conscious under such an assault. He was slow to stand, slow to think, and very slow to act. All he could do was gaze at her with a twist of pain and longing in his heart.

For there she stood…River Song.

_His _River Song.

…wearing Melody's old clothes and that devious smirk.

His heart broke.

Then reality returned.

New antibodies flooded the room.

Jack leapt to his feet just as Melody turned for the eye controls. He was already typing the commands into his vortex manipulator that would return them to earth. Melody had the shield retracting when the elevator doors opened, bringing fresh troops and the Captain of the Teselecta. "Stop!" he yelled as he pointed his gun at them.

Jack's manipulator beeped, indicating that it was ready.

Melody grinned at the troops as Jack pulled her to him, and, in a flash, they disappeared.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

To say their landing was rough would be a kindness. The world surged up to meet them, leaving the temporal travelers gasping for air and fighting to keep control of their consciousness as they lay in a tangled heap on the unfeeling floor.

Jack was the first to awaken from the haze of the vortex jump; his senses picking up bits and pieces of the world around him—the smell of dirt and hay; the oppressive humidity; and the pounding of feet as distorted voices called out to him. Needless to say, he had not landed them back in the Pond's humble home.

He felt Rory's familiar grip on his shoulder. The young soldier was saying something. Jack pushed himself up on his hands and knees and shook his head in an attempt to clear it. What had Rory said? It didn't really matter. He had something more important to say. Taking a few needed breaths, he gasped out, "I found your daughter."

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

"Like hell," Melody groaned from beneath him.

"River!" Amy pushed past the still recovering Captain to throw her arms around her daughter. "Melody!"

Melody sat in a point of confused surprise as the world settled in around her. She was back on earth; same time as when they had left; nowhere near the house; and her mother was hugging her. She blinked once before a question formed on her lips. "Who's River?"

Amy pulled back to look at her daughter, tears welling in her eyes. Before she could answer, someone said, "Spoilers."

"Spoilers?" Melody asked, turning to the unfamiliar voice.

And there he was. The Doctor. The man she had been searching for her entire life.

White hot energy surged through her veins, fueled by so many emotions! But emotions were a weakness. She put no stalk in them; just let them run their course, strengthening her actions and solidifying her resolve. This had already become a fabulous day, and it was about to get so much better!

She lowered her eyelashes to gaze up at him with a smoldering desire that had brought lesser men to their knees and whispered, "I like spoilers."

"Then you'll appreciate this one."

Melody resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Ugh, that annoying Captain was still here. She had wanted to present his dead body to the Doctor as an engagement present, but the Captain had proved to be more difficult than she had thought. She would have to punish him for that. A near-death experience had always worked well on her whenever she misbehaved; she naturally assumed it would work on everyone; but not him. He was still here. He was still talking.

"Amy, Rory, meet your daughter," he was saying. "Melody Pond. Who, might I add, has been parading about this whole time as _Mels_."

And he was spilling her secrets.

She would definitely have to punish him for that.

First things first, though.

"Mels?" her mum was repeating.

"Yes!" Melody proclaimed. She jumped past her baffled mother and astonished father to strike a pose before the deliciously oblivious Doctor. Her new body tingled most pleasantly; things falling into their proper place and all that; and she wondered if he liked what he saw.

The guarded look he was giving her told her absolutely nothing. She did not appreciate being so ignored. She wanted to make him squirm before she married him. Adopting her smolder, she sauntered up to him, invading his personal space with blatant intention, and smirked as her nose brushed his. "How do I look?" she asked. "Freshly regenerated; I have _no_ idea what I've become. You," she purred as she played with his bowtie, "Are the first to see it."

The Doctor narrowed his unreadable eyes. "Melody Pond," he said. "I've been looking for you."

"Really?" Melody asked with sultry delight. "How cute. I've been looking for you too." She looped her arms around his shoulders and pressed herself more fully against him. "I've been looking for you my entire life." She pressed her lips to his.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

Rose's heart broke. She knew it was coming. She had been warned. The Silence; the pathways; they had shown her this moment. It was going to happen.

That did not make it hurt any less.

She had emerged from her sanctuary when the TARDIS had informed her that they had landed. She had searched for the Doctor if only to find out what was happening. The console room had been eerily silent, thus she had ventured to the door. Upon opening it, she had seen the inevitable.

Rose had not even known she had cried out until it was too late. River broke the kiss and leaned her head against the Doctor's chest, grinning in a sick sort of triumph as she locked eyes with the golden-haired Bad Wolf. The Doctor would not even look at her.

Rose could not hear anything over the pounding of her own heart. It was here. Her time was up. A strange numbness overcame her. Slowly, ever so slowly, she turned around, walked back into the TARDIS, and let the door shut behind her.

She ignored Idris even as the machine reached out to her. She ignored the protests as she forced the TARDIS into the vortex. She moved mechanically; not thinking or feeling; only seeing. River had the Doctor. He did not need her.

The TARDIS landed, and Rose stepped out.

It was cold. It was dark. It was the witching hour, some would say, where mere mortals did not traipse for long upon the night. Rose walked in a daze into the quite London streets. The date was right; the time was right; but the universe wasn't right. This was the time she had landed in London when she came through the Cracks, but the Cracks were not here now. There was no returning to her home. She would never see her mother again or Toby or Pete. She had lost them; now she had lost the Doctor.

So Rose did what she did best; what she had learned to do best. She ran; or, more honestly, she walked; further and further from the TARDIS. Idris cried out for her to stop, but Rose wasn't listening. This was her punishment. She kept walking.

The golden burn of the vortex began to creep into her mind.

Maybe, if she kept walking, she could use the power to open the walls. Maybe, if she kept walking, she could go home.

Maybe...

Golden light filled her vision.

Two strong arms wrapped around her waist and hauled her back.

"No!" Rose snapped. She couldn't do it. Should couldn't do it! She couldn't face this fate. She never wanted it. She struggled against her captor, begging, "Put me down!"

"No, Rose!" It was Jack. He was pulling her back to the TARDIS. "I won't let you disappear on me, not now!"

"Put me down!"

This time, Jack listened. He put her on the ground, but he did not let her go. "Rose, look at me, come on."

She refused. She clenched her eyes shut. Tears were already heating her cheeks. She did not want to be here anymore.

"I need your help, Rose!" Jack was saying. "The Doctor..."

"...doesn't need me!" Rose snapped. She hit Jack's arms at the elbows, forcing him to let her go. She stumbled back and sank to her knees. "Don't you get it?" she asked. The heat of the vortex had faded, leaving only the sting of her empty and broken heart. "He never needed me."

"Rose." Jack was confused. She could hear it in his voice.

She looked down at the concrete beneath her and sighed heavily, the reality of it all sinking in around her. "I was never supposed to be here, and he..." She looked up at the stars shining overhead. "He doesn't want me."

"Rose, you don't understand..." Jack started with urgency.

"No, you don't understand," Rose countered. "I made it to the Medusa Cascade. I was supposed to be there. I was supposed to see him again. I was supposed to regain my life. I was supposed to have my husband! And now it's all gone and I'm stuck here." She covered her face with her hands as she sobbed, "I'm damned to love him and lose him no matter what timeline I live."


	12. Let's Kill the Lies

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Twelve: Let's Kill the Lies

It had happened at Demon's Run. Rose had been cornered by the Silence. The TARDIS was gone. The Doctor was gone. There was no one to protect her but herself. She would have to fight them, and fight them she would. She was Commander Tyler, the Doctor's General. She had led the charge to take Demon's Run. She would not fall to the Silence.

"Well then," she whispered as she opened her eyes. They were glowing gold. "Bring it on."

She released the power of the Time Vortex, or, as much of that power as she knew she had. It was a consequence of traveling through the Cracks in the Universe. She was the Bad Wolf. She created herself. The TARDIS had protected her up until now. It was time she showed the Silence who she was. She let the song fill her, and she attacked.

The Silence was ready. As one, they brought their assault upon her mind. The pressure of their psyche against hers was shocking and near-overwhelming. Rose pushed against them, refusing to grant them access to her mind. For a moment, she could. For one moment, she held them back. Then that moment was gone, and the Silence was in her soul.

They broke through her defenses and dove for the most intimate parts of her memories. Rose fought them at every turn, but she was still untrained in the arts of her new powers. When she thought she had shut them out of one part of her mind, they rose up in another to torment her still. They found every secret, ever sin, and every pain. Every person who died for her at Torchwood was brought to the forefront of her memory; the pain of losing them was fresh as she was forced to relive their deaths. Then, it was her family; losing them again as she became trapped on this side of the wall. She ached with each memory of her mother and Toby and Pete.

Finally, they broke into the center of her heart where the one person she cared for most was kept safe. They found her memories of her time with the Doctor. They forced her to relieve every moment of every time he rejected her; ever argument they had; every betrayal experienced. She relived his death at the Game Station; the betrayal of his leaving her on a spaceship to go save Madam de Pompadour; the ache of his sending her away at Torchwood Tower; and the shattering of her heart as she was trapped away from him forever.

The pain of her memories threatened to drown her. She lost her grip on the Time Vortex. It swirled through her in a chaotic storm. There was no way to escape. She was going to die.

Then, through the chaos and the pain, an echo of a memory whispered to her, _"Follow the paths of past and future born of blood and battle."_

Rose concentrated on that phrase; the phrase that had haunted her since her return. She had wanted to know; now was the time. Would it save her? She did not know, but she was the Bad Wolf, and words strewn across time and space were her guide. With all that was left of her resolve, she focused on that phrase, and the chaos began to fade, the pain dimmed, and, deep in the core of her soul where this battle raged, a golden memory surfaced. Rose latched onto it, and she was pulled into her own heart where the paths of past and future born of blood and battle could be found.

She found herself on at Bad Wolf Bay. She was reliving the Doctor's goodbye. She watched through her own eyes as his image faded away before he could say what it was he was going to say. He had left her with only her name, Rose Tyler, echoing in the air.

Time seemed to speed up around her. She watched through the eyes of her memory as she settled into a life in Pete's world. She worked for him at Torchwood. She rose through the ranks; she and Mickey together. They were a team. She saw herself young and vibrant and still so full of hope. She saw them begin to build the Dimension Cannon, and it was here she began to see things that did not make sense for they had not happened; yet, as she watched through her own eyes and lived the experiences, she knew that this had been a timeline that had existed.

She saw the Dimension Cannon work. She saw herself make it through to the Battle of the Medusa Cascade. She saw herself with the Doctor again. She saw him get shot and begin to regenerate only to cheat death by forcing the energy into a hand in a jar. She saw them get captured; she saw them face Davros. Then she saw _him_. The Metacrisis. He and Donna Noble saved them. They saved the world.

Then, she saw them back on Bad Wolf Bay. Pain fresh and new and yet old rose in her chest as she realized what was happening. He was leaving her. He was leaving her on Bad Wolf Bay in Pete's world with his clone, believing that this was the life that would make her happy. In the shock and suddenness of it all, she lived the moment that had been haunting her in her dreams. She saw the Metacrisis lean forward and whisper the words her Doctor could never say, and, overwhelmed by the emotions of the moment, she allowed herself a weakness. She pulled him to her and kissed him.

The Doctor left them to live, and live they had. She had sent the Metacrisis away to discover himself as she would discover herself. Two years later, they met again, and the love they had was stronger than anything that could have been born from a love thrust upon them by the Doctor. They were wed, they were happy, and they would soon be expecting a child to grow their family.

Then the Cracks opened and everything changed.

Rose watched through her memory's eyes as the Metacrisis, John, discovered it first. The timelines were unraveling. The Cracks were effecting time in all realms. If they did not stop it...but then he disappeared. Right before her eyes, he was unwritten from time. The despair had not had even a moment to sink in before Rose felt time unravel all around her. In her life, in experiencing that moment in its true time, she had forgotten. Her memories of that life had disappeared. Now, though, as the Bad Wolf, reliving a time that was now no more, she remembered.

She watched time return to the point before the damage done by the Cracks had started. Again, she was at Bad Wolf Bay; again, he was saying her name; and again, he was unable to finish his sentence. Commander Tyler felt the dread rise in her as she realized what came next. This timeline was her life; it was the life she had lived and remembered now. It was the life where Rose Tyler died and Commander Tyler lived. She did not want to relieve this life, but the pathways of blood and battle would not release her.

She watched it all happen again. She watched herself and Mickey rise in the ranks. She watched the young, hopeful Rose begin to build the Dimension Cannon, but, in this timeline, it did not work. She did not know why, but the Dalek War never happened. She never made it through, and the blows to her hope began to chip away at her soul as each day passed into months and years.

Time slowed for a moment in her journey to allow her to see the tipping point—the moment she gave up ever seeing the Doctor again. There was no John there with her. There was only her in the darkness of her flat, staring angrily at her reflection as tears poured from her eyes. Tears of anger and frustration fell with more insistence than any tear of sorrow could. It was in this moment that her heart grew cold. She remembered even as she relieved it now the feeling of taking the TARDIS key from around her neck and burying in a draw, never to be seen again. This night marked the beginning of the era of Commander Tyler.

The paths pulled her forward. Battles surrounded her. So many battles; they blurred together; distinguished only by the enemies she fought and the people she lost. She grew older; she grew colder; and time returned her to the moment when it all unraveled.

This timeline faced the Cracks as well. This timeline saw her and Mickey analyze the Cracks and realize that time was unraveling. This timeline saw the Dimension Cannon begin to work. She watched Mickey volunteer to go through. He would discover what was causing the Cracks and report back. Two weeks after his jump, the Cracks began to destabilize. Somewhere in her cold heart, she had felt a sense of panic at the thought of losing Mickey. She had lost so much; she refused to lose him. In the heat of an impulsive moment, she retrieved her TARDIS key and jumped into the unknown.

The Cracks dropped her in London in the middle of a starless night that had been broken by a single sun. Her instincts had told her that this was the point where the Cracks converged. She fashioned a tracker out of her dimension hopper and hurried to the point of origin, but, before she could get there, something happened. Something flew into the burning sun, and the world around her snapped like a rubber band.

Again, in living it, she had not known what had happened. Now, watching as the Wolf, she saw. Time was righting itself. The Cracks were closing. History was being rewritten. All things should have returned to normal; she should have returned to her life with John; but because she and Mickey had travelled to this world, their timelines were written into the time of this world, not Pete's world, thus, when time was healed and the world righted again, she found herself waking in a hospital once again trapped on the other side of the dimension walls away from her family.

Then and only then did the paths of blood and battle release her. She floated back up into the fray; into the battle of her soul. New truths rushed her mind, bringing in their wake clarity to moments that had not made sense. The Doctor had remembered. He knew she was not supposed to be there. He knew she was supposed to be living her life with John. How else did he know that she was messing up the timelines?

Kovarian's words taunted her. _"The Bad Wolf. A fitting name for the Doctor's attack dog. Such a loyal pet. Unnecessary loyalty. Quite sad, actually, watching a dog repeatedly return to a master who does not want it. The Lost Child of Time sacrificed her heart on the altar of the Doctor. And he let it burn."_

The Doctor had left her; he did not want her; he did not need her.

Time fragmented around her. The Silence was aiming to finish her. A piece of a future filled her mind. The Doctor, standing in a field with the sun shining behind him, was kissing River Song.

The truths of the paths, the assault of the Silence, and the pain of that possible future had filled her so powerfully that something inside her cracked. The power of the Vortex intensified. A song of storm and fire filled her mind. It all became too much that Rose could do nothing more than scream. The power rushed out of her and vaporized the Silence. She felt herself returning to her physical body—a body that was burning with the vortex inside it. There, at Demon's Run, the Bad Wolf had returned to her full power.

Now, here, in the streets of London, Rose Tyler sank into her lowest despair. "You see, Jack?" she asked. "I've messed everything up, and now I have to watch him leave me again; but this time, I don't have the luxury of leaving. I'm trapped here."

Jack had been patient with her as she told her story. He had listened in silence, taking in each word as it came, and allowing the truth of Rose's pain to reveal all. Now that it was over, it was his turn to explain a few truths. "Rose, Melody is killing him."

Those words pierced the veil of her pain. She looked up at him with confusion in her eyes. "What?"

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

Jack did not know that something could hurt as badly as watching Melody Pond kiss the Doctor. Logically, it shouldn't. He barely knew her, and yet, as she pressed her lips against his, a feeling very similar to a jealous rage cut through him. He wanted to make the Doctor hurt for this, but before he could move, a cry echoed through the field. His rage diminished when he turned and saw the look of utter betrayal on Rose's face. She was standing in the doorway of the TARDIS. Betrayal gave way to heartbreak, and, like a ghost, Rose turned away. She walked back into the TARDIS, the door closed, and the ship disappeared into the Vortex.

"Well, that was rather dramatic," Melody cooed. She ran a long finger down the Doctor's cheek as she asked, "Don't you think?"

The Doctor seemed to come back to life in that moment. He grabbed Melody's hand and stepped back. There was a storm brewing in his eyes. "What did you do?" he demanded.

"My my," Melody purred, unafraid in the face of his palpable anger. "Aren't we a clever boy. Figuring out your gift so soon."

"Gift?" Amy asked.

Melody spun around to declare, "My wedding gift, of course. What sort of bride would I be if I did not bring my beloved Doctor gifts to celebrate our union?"

"Your what?" Rory asked; his tone was an even mix of confusion and a father's anger.

"Oh daddy, don't be like that," Melody said as she turned back to the Doctor. "I'm going to marry the Doctor. Today, in fact. I've already given you my presents, though, I wanted to give you the Captain's head on a platter but he just refused to die!"

Her words pierced through him with a crueler pain than her kiss could ever cause. He looked down at his vortex manipulator, the truth sinking into his heart. "The Teselecta."

"Why yes, Captain," Melody said. She had finally stepped away from the Doctor and given them her full attention. "Did you really think our little trip was a fluke? You were to be my first present. The Wolf's heart, my second. Obviously things did not work out the way I wished, but," She glanced back at the Doctor with a coy smile and a wink. "I'm nothing if not _very _flexible."

The Doctor, for his part, was looking pale. He was rigged and unreadable. His eyes watched Melody's every move. "Riv—ah!" the Doctor collapsed.

"Doctor!" Amy screamed. She and Rory both ran to his side.

Melody laughed as she turned to watch them. "And my final gift is this."

Jack had had enough. Marching up to Melody, he repeated the Doctor's demand of "What did you do?"

Melody grinned. "Simple, Captain. I gave the Doctor the ultimate expression of my love." She leaned forward and bit out the final word. "Death."

"Melody Pond!" Amy stood up and faced her daughter. Her eyes were narrowed and her hands were pressed against her hips. "Stop this this instant! What did you do to the Doctor?"

Melody rolled her eyes. "It's just poison, mum. A rather merciful death, really. It is much kinder than what I have in store for the Captain and the Wolf."

Jack narrowed his eyes. "We don't die that easily."

"Oh Captain," Melody cooed. "You already are. I know you. I've studied you all my life. I know how to kill immortals." She cocked her head back, indicating the Doctor, then to the side to note the now absent Rose. "You take out their heart."

"Melody," Jack warned.

Melody stepped back. "The Wolf is first. Love is death, Captain. The Wolf will die because of love. The Doctor will die because of _my_ love. And since you refused to die on the Teselecta as an expression of my love for the Doctor, I will let you die slowly, because of your love for them." Melody raised her hand to the sky. She smirked in triumph, for in her hand was the Sonic Screwdriver. She activated it, and the sky turned tumultuous. The winds of the Time Vortex whipped around them. A portal opened in the sky, bringing the Teselecta.

The human ship landed with a ground-shaking impact that sent Amy and Jack to their knees. Before the ship and its crew could recover, Melody was pointing the Sonic at it. Sparks flew from the machine. It slumped forward, showing that it had been powered down.

Melody sauntered over to Jack and kicked him under the chin. Jack fell back, dazed from the attacked, leaving him vulnerable.

Melody squatted next to him and reached for the Authority on his arm. "Your death will span lifetimes and be the most painful, for you will be the last one left. I am going to let you live to see my love come to fruition, but I will not make it easy," she explained. "I am going to let you choose one person to save." She stood up and walked away, allowing her explanation to echo around him. "Will it be my mum?" She strapped the Authority onto Amy's wrist before the young woman could react and moved on to her next selection. "Will it be my dad?" She removed the Authority from her wrist and forced it onto Rory. When her father tried to hinder her, Melody simply knocked him to the ground and pressed her foot into his neck. She grinned sweetly at her father. "Stay down, please," she said before looking back up at the Captain. "Or will it be that foolish Wolf? You get to choose."

His curse finally kicked in; the damage to his head healed; and he swung to his feet.

He was not quick enough. Melody activated the Sonic once more, and Amy and Rory disappeared in a flash into the Teselecta. "The game is on, Captain. Love and death; life and hatred." She lifted the Sonic into the air. "Which will you choose?"

The Doctor looked up at Jack from the ground. They locked eyes for a moment.

Then, in a flash, they were gone, leaving Jack alone in the field.


	13. Let's Know the Truth

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Thirteen: Let's Know the Truth

The Doctor could not breathe. He could not focus. He could do very little save sit against the wall as Melody riffled through the draws of whatever home they had invaded. His mind was a cloud of hot, hazy pain. Whatever she had done to him, it was swift and it was efficient and it was killing him. He could feel his body shutting down. What was more, he could not feel the energies of regeneration stirring. This did not bode well for him, he had to admit. If he were dying, the regeneration process would begin, but it wasn't even though he was.

He wondered if he should be more frightened. If he was correct and he would not regenerate after this, he should, logically, be afraid, but he wasn't. He was sad. He had lived a life full of regrets; sorrow was a constant companion for him. It was only fitting that it be with him in his final moments. He had assumed he would face his death in a battle somewhere. He was the Doctor, after all; pain and destruction followed him wherever he went. So to be faced with a semi-slow death was a bit baffling. It made him reflect when he did not want to reflect; it made him remember when he did not want to remember; it made him regret.

He regretted much of his life. He regretted many of the choices he had made for the sake of the universe. He regretted not being able to save the people he loved. He regretted so many things, and yet, in this, his final moments, he found that he regretted the most his own cowardice. He had had a second chance, but he had not taken it. He had the chance to say what he should have said, but he never did. He could have enjoyed what precious little time he had been given back, but he hadn't. He had thrown it away like he did, and now, he would die, and she would never know.

Maybe it was for the better. She never should have gone with him in the first place.

"...don't you think, Doctor?"

Melody Pond, his newest regret, was talking to him. She had been talking to him for quite some time now, but he had not been listening. He had not truly cared. In his final moments, he determined, he would allow himself to be selfish. He did not want to hear what she had to say. She was tearing what was left of his life to shreds in the name of loving him. Rose was gone; Jack was gone; Amy and Rory were trapped; and he was dying. Why should he listen?

"Doctor, it's rude to ignore your bride," Melody chided.

"My apologies," he wheezed. "I was distracted by this...lovely gift...you've given me."

"Do you like it?" Melody asked. "I thought long and hard about what it should be. What to give to the man who has all of time and space? It took me most of my last regeneration to get it just right."

She was insane. That was certain. The Silence had taken Amy's child and turned her into a weapon just like they said they would. He had been unable to stop it. Yes, a fresh, new regret. "River, please."

"Who's River?" Melody asked as she turned away from the full length mirror. She had finally settled on the proper outfit for this momentous occasion. Nothing said wedding like combat boots and a long duster coat. She was definitely satisfied with her look. "You and the Captain. River, River, River. Is she important?" Melody sat in front of him and cocked her head. "Do I need to kill her too?"

"No...killing." the Doctor whispered.

"Death is love, Doctor. If you love this River girl, I will love her too."

Love River? Maybe. Once upon a time. He had been intrigued by the fiery doctor who had met him in the Library so long ago. She had known his name, had trusted him, and had risked everything to save him. When he met her again, she was wild and adventurous, knowing how to compliment him step for step. River Song had marched to the beat of her own drum, and the Doctor had been drawn to the sound. That all changed when...

Weakness forced him to lean back against the wall, and in this next stage of death, he breathed a prayer, "Rose."

Melody frowned. "The Wolf. Her, I do not love."

The Doctor could not help but grin at her contradictory confession. "Yet, you...want to kill...her."

"No, Doctor, _you_ kill her," Melody corrected. "She dies because of her love for you. If she didn't love you, she would live." It was a statement of fact, nothing more. "I love you too, thus I will let the Wolf die. Aren't I a good wife?"

Pain not caused by the poison surging through his veins gripped the Doctor's hearts. "Melody," he gasped. "Please stop this. Please. You don't have to do this."

"Oh, but I do," Melody affirmed. "I'm a psychopath. I love a psychopath. Why would I not give him my love in the greatest ways?"

"This...is not...love," the Doctor said. He was pleading with her. He needed to get through to her. His life was ending. Maybe, just maybe, he could do this one good thing. Maybe he could save her life.

Melody looked at him with a twisted innocence. "You're wrong, Doctor. This is love. This is how love is expressed: through pain and suffering and death. It is the way of the world."

"It is the way...of the Silence."

Melody's countenance became dark. She leaned forward until her face was inches from his. "And whose fault is that?"

"We tried," the Doctor said.

"Well you didn't try hard enough," Melody growled. Standing, she walked away, her voice carrying through the room as she spoke. "I escaped on my own. I found my parents on my own. I found _you_ on my own. I will love you, and I will love them." She stopped in front of the inanimate Teselecta and reached up to stroke its cold face. "My Doctor and my parents. It's all the love I need."

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

"Melody Pond, you let us out of here this instant!" Amy yelled for the nth time.

"She can't hear us," Rory said from one of the consoles.

"Yes, she can," Amy snapped. "She can always hear me. Melody!"

Rory sighed heavily and returned to his task. They had been stuck in this strange ship for only a few moments, but it had felt like an eternity. He did not understand how Melody had teleported them in here nor did he know how they arrived at this abandoned house. What he did know was that whatever was wrong with the Doctor was life-threatening. He needed to get himself and Amy out of here so they could help him.

The ship was abandoned. He did not know nor care where the crew were. All that mattered was that whatever Melody had done to the ship was wearing off. The ship's systems were rebooting. He hoped that meant he could find a way to access the controls.

"Melody Pond, you listen to your mother!"

_"Parental claim received."_

The Ponds froze. "What was that?" Rory asked.

_"Analyzing claim. Please wait."_

Amy hurried to her husband. "Rory, is the ship talking to us?"

"I think so," Rory affirmed.

_"Analyses complete. Parental claim approved. Updating authorities."_

The strange wrist bands that Melody had strapped onto them hummed and beeped before turning green.

"Ok," Amy said. She looked at the band. "Um...computer?"

_"Greetings Amelia Pond."_

"Uh...hi," Amy greeted. She grinned at Rory. "This is so cool!"

_"Request COOL acknowledged. Activated cooling systems." _A rush of cold air filled the room.

"Rory, I think we control the ship now!" Amy said.

"Good, tell it to let us go."

_"Request received. Analyzing."_

The Ponds waited with baited breath. It could not be that easy...

_"Request denied."_

Amy cursed as Rory said, "Of course it is."

"Why?" Amy demanded.

_"A hostile threat has been detected in the vicinity. Please stay aboard until threat has passed."_

"Threat? What threat?" Amy asked.

A large viewing screen activated on the front wall. Amy and Rory looked at it in time to see a police report appear on the screen. The report zoomed in on a three-dimensional image of Melody. _"Melody Pond," _the Computer explained. _"War Criminal. Wanted for Murder of the Doctor."_

"What?" Amy breathed. She stepped back and shook her head in denial. "No. No, she wouldn't do that. River would never do that!"

"She's doing it now," Rory replied with morbid dread. "Whatever she did to the Doctor back there is killing him."

Amy shook her head again. She refused to believe it. The River she knew would never do that. River fought alongside the Doctor. She defended him, protected him, and cared for him. She would not kill him!

The police report staring her in the face claimed otherwise. River Song was a prisoner. She had been in jail; though, she never told them why. River was Melody. Melody was wanted for the Doctor's murder. Amy sank down into the nearest chair and covered her mouth with her hand. "It can't be true," she whispered.

"Computer," Rory said as he knelt next to his wife. "Is it confirmed that Melody Pond is guilt of the Doctor's death?"

_"Affirmative," _the computer replied. _"Melody Pond confessed guilt before the Shadow Proclamation on—"_

"When did he die?" Amy asked. She looked up. There was fire in her Scottish eyes. "When does the Doctor die?"

_"Classified."_

"Classified my arse! I have access," Amy snapped. "Tell me when the Doctor dies!"

_"Classified."_

Amy turned to one of the consoles and began typing furiously, all the while demanding the computer to tell her. She would not believe some stupid computer from a stupid human-ship thing just because it had a record and claimed her daughter confessed. People confessed all the time to crimes they did not commit. She refused to believe her daughter would do anything to harm the Doctor. "Tell me the date!" She hit a key, and alarms began to sound throughout the ship.

_"Access denied. Security threat detected. Authorities stripped."_

The wrist bands changed from green to red.

Amy looked up at Rory with wide eyes. "Oops."

_"Activating antibodies."_

Silver orbs rose out of secret compartments throughout the room. Amy and Rory watched with growing dread as the orbs transformed into security drones.

_"Greetings," _the closest drone said. _"You are unauthorized. Please remain calm as your death is initiated."_

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

Rose was strangely calm. It was not the numbness that follows emotional hollowness. She had felt that before. It was not any sort of peace either, for she could not say she was at peace with her fate. She was calm, though, and that would have to be enough.

Once Jack had gotten through to her, she had acted. The Doctor was dying. Melody had poisoned him somehow. She and Jack had spent the next few precious moments trying to find them. Jack had told her that Melody had stolen a ship called the Teselecta from the Justice Deparment. It was only a matter of hacking into and researching the Justice Department's Systems to find the Teselecta and then creating the search parameters that would allow the TARDIS to find it. The TARDIS had located the ship in moments, and now, they were on their way.

Jack had explained the details of Melody's little game. He had said that Melody would only allow him to save one person. He had come for her. Now, they were going to save the others. Would Melody allow this change in her little game? According to Jack's testimony, Melody had been turned into something inhumane. She had sought to kill them all for the Doctor. She would not allow Jack to deviate from the rules of her game. That did not matter, though, for soon, everything would be put to right.

"Can I save him, Idris?" Rose whispered.

Idris was silent, contemplative, and hesitant. She did not wish to answer her Heart, but she could refuse her Heart nothing. The TARDIS wrapped Rose in an embrace so warm and so loving that it nearly broke the woman's resolve. _"You can."_

Rose closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

The TARDIS landed.

It was time to go.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

It was a confrontation that would become legend. The Face of Boe and the Bad Wolf had arrived to face the Lost Child of the Silence in order to decide the fate of the Guardian of Time and Space. It was a tale that would be told around fires and in pubs and as bedtime stories. Soldiers would rally to victory because of the valiant Bad Wolf. Children would decide their fate because of the Face of Boe. Many would tell their version, and none would tell the truth. It was only for the witnesses to know.

Rose and Jack stepped out of the TARDIS into a spacious living room that looked to have been abandoned for some time. Wallpaper was faded and peeling. The furniture was broken and forgotten. The curtains were nearly translucent, and yet almost no light could be seen through the grime on the windows. It made for a gloomy scene; fitting, truly, for what was to come.

Melody stood on the opposite side of the room. The Teselecta was in the corner, and the Doctor was behind her. He wasn't moving save for the unsteady rise and fall of his chest. He was alive. That was good. Rose stepped forward to meet Melody. She had asked Jack to allow her a few minutes before he acted. Jack agreed and thus remained back by the TARDIS to wait.

Melody stood her ground. She was smirking and cocky. She knew she had won. Rose would let her keep her sense of victory. She was not here to fight. She was here to set everything right.

"You chose the Wolf, Captain?" Melody asked. She tsked and shook her head. "What a poor decision. I had thought a man of such nobility as you would at least attempt to save the one person I said you couldn't. Do you not care about the Doctor?"

"Jack will save who he wants to save," Rose said.

"But he can only save one," Melody reminded. "That was the rule. He saved you. The rest are mine."

"Did he?" Rose asked.

"Pardon?" Melody countered.

"Did he save me?"

Melody laughed. "Of course he did. You're standing right there. I'm not a fool, Wolf. You were going to die, but the poor, pathetic Captain could not bear to let it happen. Oh...River will be so disappointed."

"If only you knew," Rose said. She continued to walk forward at a slow and steady pace until she was standing before Melody Pond. "Jack told me you wanted to present my heart as a gift to the Doctor. Is that true?"

Melody tilted her chin up defiantly. "I did. I take it you do not approve of my gift as you are, sadly, alive."

"I am an impossibility," Rose said. "You and I both know this. Your teachers would not have ignored that little fact."

"They did not," Melody agreed. "The timelines have altered. _You_, the big Bad Wolf, were never supposed to be here."

"Yet, I'm here," Rose said. She began to raise her hands. "I've come across stars and time. I've traversed realms and survived unraveled timelines. I've defied impossibilities all to come here."

"A hefty resume," Melody chimed. "So very dramatic. Well, Wolf, I must ask, then, why? Why come back when you know what will happen?"

Rose's hands were now up to her shoulders. She dropped her head in acknowledgement. "Yes, I know." She had known the moment Jack told her the truth. She had known what it was she would face if she came back here. She could feel the vortex stirring. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, and raised her head. "The rules of the game remain, and you want to give your gift."

"You're right." Melody's face grew cold as she withdrew her gun. "I do."

Time slowed around them; narrowed until it was just the two. Outside the boundaries of this moment, all was forgotten.

Rose's arms were raised in surrender.

Melody aimed her gun at Rose's heart and pulled the trigger.

She would set things right.

The bullet flew from its chamber...

...and buried itself into a back clad in tweed.

Time sped up as the Doctor gasped from the impact. His body jerked forward into Rose's; his eyes were locked with hers'; and her cry of denial echoed in his ears as he fell into her arms.


	14. Let's Start Again

_Of Blood and Battle_

By: Jecir

Chapter Fourteen: Let's Start Again

Melody was baffled. She was rarely baffled, for she knew everything. Everything any human or alien or transdimentional being could or would ever do, she knew. She was trained to know. She could read any target, dissect any plan, and manipulate any situation to her advantage. Nothing caught her by surprise except for this.

The Doctor had sacrificed his life for the Wolf, and the Wolf was sad. That made no sense. Why was she so sad? By choosing death, the Doctor was showing his love for the Wolf—a fact that baffled Melody further for the Doctor was to be her true love. She was to be the cause of his death, not the Wolf, yet the Wolf was the recipient of his declaration, and she was sad. Melody shook her head. "You are strange, Wolf."

The Wolf, for her part, did not reply. She was focused on the Doctor.

The Captain was standing nearby; keeping his distance but staying close. He was a peculiar soldier. He had chosen to save the Wolf only to let her come to her...well, what was supposed to be her death. The Doctor had ruined that. Melody was getting tired of people interfering with her plans. The Captain was supposed to die, but he didn't; thus she made him play her game, but he changed the rules. The Wolf was supposed to die in her love and become a gift to the Doctor; she didn't do either. The Doctor had died for the Wolf when he was supposed to die by _her _hands. Things had not gone her way, and Melody was not happy about it. She was baffled and unhappy. This was turning out to be not so good a day.

Hoping to lighten her own spirits, Melody turned her eyes to the Captain. "You lose," she said simply.

Jack did not turn to her, but he did speak. "Is this all a game to you?"

She decided she liked it when he spoke. He was funny. He acted so noble and honorable, but she knew the truth about him. He was a murderer the same as her. What right did he have to be so serious? Rocking back on her heels, Melody said, "Yes, of course it is. Life any other way is boring."

Jack looked up at her now. His eyes were dark and focused. It was an alluring intensity. "You cannot play with other peoples' lives like this. It isn't right."

"Please," Melody chided. "Do not lecture me, Captain. You are no better. You and the Doctor and the Wolf; it's all you do. Play and meddle and judge how the universe is to be run. You just do it in the name of good."

"No," was the Captain's rebuttal. "We do not do this." He pointed at Rose and the Doctor. "We don't gamble with the lives of those around us, and every person we come against has a choice."

"Choice?" Melody balked. "What choice? There is no choice in life, Captain. We are what we are. I am a psychopath, and you and your valiant crew are pawns in my game."

_"Doctor, help!" _

Her mother's cry echoed through the room, silencing their debate and drawing her attention. Something cold knotted at the bottom of her stomach at the sound. The Teselecta's lips were moving, and her mother's voice was coming out in a repeated cry for aid. _"Doctor! Help! Help, please! Doctor!"_ With each cry, that cold knotting grew tighter. What was it?

"Are they a part of your game? Jack asked. His tone was hard, and his eyes blazed with righteous anger. Melody gaped up at him, unable to answer as another cry for help filled the room. Jack pointed at the Teselecta. "Those are your parents. Are they pawns to? When you are done with me and Rose, were you planning on killing them?"

Killing them? The very thought caused her spine to stiffen. "No!" she snapped. How could she? She had spent every waking hour of her life trying to find them. When the Silence punished her, she would dream of her mother's beautiful hair or her father's strength. She had clung to wisps of memories—the scent of her mother, the warmth of her father, and the strange feeling that filled her when they were together in her dreams—all throughout her dark life. When she had escaped the Spaceman, she had searched and searched and searched for them, and when she found them, she swore never to let them go. "I would never hurt them!"

Jack smiled. It was a brilliant, manic smile that broke through the harsh anger. "Exactly," he said. "What you feel right there. _That_ is love. Love isn't death. Love is life. Love is wanting the one you love beside you for as long as you live."

Melody looked down at Rose. She had pulled the Doctor's body against her chest and had curled around him. She was crying into his jacket. Love was wanting...to live?

_"Doctor!" _Amy screamed through the Teselecta.

Melody looked back up at the human-ship; her insides clenched again. She knew this feeling. It was fear—fear for the lives of her parents. She was afraid for them; she wanted them to live.

"I came back to save you," the Captain said. "I believe you are more than what the Silence tried to create in you. You feel love, I know it, and that love can be what changes everything." Jack met her gaze and held it as he reached out his hand to her. "You have a choice, Melody Pond. Life and love or hatred and death."

Melody looked at his hand, her mind filled with conflicting emotions. She had never believed she could be any more than what she was, and yet the Captain, who she had tried to destroy, believed in her. She felt fear; she felt longing. She wanted her parents beside her. Jack said that was love.

She knew what she would choose.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

Rory pulled Amy behind him as they ran down corridor after corridor. The antibodies were everywhere. Wherever they turned, they had to duck, dodge, or backtrack to a safer hallway. The further they ran, the more antibodies chased them, but he would not give up. He would do everything he could to get Amy to safety. They had just found their daughter. They could not die here!

"Rory!" Amy screamed.

Rory stumbled to a halt. A trio of antibodies was blocking the path. They backed up and turned, but the way that had come was blocked as well. Rory moved Amy back. They were cornered.

_"You are unauthorized. Be calm while your death is initiated."_

Amy clutched Rory's shoulder. She was trembling. Rory turned and pulled her close. "I love you," he said.

"I love you," Amy said.

They held each other close and waited for the inevitable.

The whir of the Time Rotor filled the air; wind whipped around them; and the stale air of the Teselecta was replaced with the welcoming warm of the TARDIS. Rory and Amy opened their eyes in wonderment. They could not believe it. They were alive!

"Amy! Rory!" Jack trotted down the stairs and clasped the young couple on the shoulders. He was smiling with relief.

"Jack," Rory returned. "Cutting it a bit close there."

"Sorry about that," Jack said. "TARDIS has a new driver." He turned and waved to the console.

Melody timidly peaked around the control. She did not know what to do. She had put her parents in danger. This was her fault. The fear she had felt earlier was intensifying, causing her to shrink back. She had never been so uncertain before. Would her parents still love her? Would they want her to live by their sides? "I...uh..." she stuttered. "I can fly her. She told me how."

Amy pulled away from her husband and slowly made her way to the console, never once taking her eyes off of her daughter.

Melody watched her with nervous confusion. "She said I was the Child of the TARDIS," she whispered as Amy drew closer. "What does that mean?"

Amy pulled her daughter into a strong embrace. "It means you are our daughter," she said. "And we love you."

Melody stood still, unused to this kind of touch. She looked at Jack over her mother's shoulder. She could see her father coming over to add his embrace to the group. It felt nice. She could smell her mother; she could feel her father. They weren't memories. They were real. This...was love?

Jack nodded to her from outside the circle, affirming her queries without needing to speak.

Melody smiled then, a real smile, and returned her parents' embrace.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

It was quiet. Moments ago there had been chaos, and now it was quiet. Moments ago Jack had been fighting to find some trace of River Song within Melody; now he had found it and was reveling in it. Moments ago she was facing her death; now she was alive and alone. Moments ago she was ready to reset time; now she sat in fear of an uncertain future.

The tears were falling unnoticed as she lowered his body to the floor. She allowed her fingers to trace his face and stroke his hair. "You fool," she whispered. "You absolute fool." Her fingers traveled down his face and neck and stopped at his bowtie. There, they rested. "I was going to set everything right. You just had to let me die, and things would have gone back to normal."

"And why...would I...do that?" The question was quiet, so very quiet that she almost did not hear him. Rose gasped as she watched the Doctor's eyes flutter open just enough for him to gaze up at her. He smiled weakly and reached up to wipe away the tears on her cheek.

"Doctor," Rose said through trembling lips. "Why? Why did you do this? I was going to fix it."

"Fix...what?" he asked softly. His eyes were glazed and a lazy smile spread across his pale face as he stroked her cheek with his cold knuckles.

Rose grabbed his hand and pressed it against her cheek. "Everything," she confessed. "You were right. I'm not supposed to be here. I know that now."

"Your wrong, Rose," he whispered.

"Shh," Rose breathed. "It's ok. I can still fix this. I can still save you. If I release the vortex, it will fix the timelines. It will be as if I was never here."

"But I don't want that," the Doctor replied.

"Yes, you do," Rose admonished. She was trying to be strong. She was trying to give him back what she had stolen from him. "You made that decision on Bad Wolf Bay, and I will honor it, I promise."

"Rose..."

"I'll disappear. You can live on, happy, with River and Amy and Rory and..." She broke off with a sob.

Using the hand that she held captive, the Doctor drew her down till their foreheads touched. "Rose Tyler." He said her name like a prayer. "My fantastic Rose Tyler." Looking deep into her eyes, he said, "I made the wrong choice that day, and I am so happy that I got to have the chance to see you again."

The tears in her eyes feel fresh and anew as his words washed over her, unraveling every lie and silencing every doubt. "Doctor," she sobbed. "Please...please don't."

It was his turn to shush her. His eyes were growing heavy. Darkness began to take the edges of his vision. He pulled at the last smidge of his strength to look at her, to let her be the last thing he saw. "This truly is my last chance to say it. Rose Tyler..." He lifted his head just enough to whisper with his last breath, "I love you." Then, he was gone.

Rose choked on the sob rising in her throat. She could not contain the pain. It was too much. She curled her body over his, pressed her face into his jacket, and released her sorrow.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

When the TARDIS landed, it landed in the midst of the Wolf's tears. Melody stood back as her parents and Jack hurried out. They had heard the Wolf's wails of despair and were swift to come to her side. Melody was less confident. She had stolen the Wolf's love. She had brought this death. If love was life, then hatred was death. She wondered what the Wolf would do to her in retaliation for this. There would be no mercy. There never was in her life. She had done this; the Wolf had the right to punish her; thus, she hovered on the edges of the scene and waited.

Her mother was pale as she knelt next to the Doctor's body. Her father was kneeling with her, holding her close and whispering soothingly. The Captain stood over the gathering, grim faced and silent. It was as if he had witnessed this very scene before. She watched it all with wonder. This was death. She had never stayed long enough to see this part. She had been the killer. She delivered death and moved on to the next mission. Was this what she left behind? The cold fear in her stomach was changing into something more painful; something that twisted her gut in a new way. She did not like this. She did not like this at all.

"River." Melody started at the name. The Wolf was looking up at her. Her eyes were red and watery but there was no hatred in those brown depths. "Did you find River?"

"Yes," Jack replied before Melody could ask again about this River woman.

Rose sat back and wiped her eyes, saying, "She looks confused."

Jack glanced back at her with a small grin. "She doesn't know."

"Know what?" Melody asked, feeling once again shy under their gazes.

It was her mother who answered. "Computer, are you still there?"

_"Affirmative," _the Teselecta answered.

Amy looked up at the machine. Her voice was numb and mechanical as she said, "Show me River Song."

The Teselecta activated. The panels that formed its skin rose and spun and set back into place, creating the image of a woman with curly hair and dark eyes and who looked just like her. Melody took a step toward the machine. "I don't understand," she said.

"You are River Song," Amy said. "You are my daughter. The bravest warrior in the entire universe. You protect those you love, you fight for what is right, and nothing ever stops you."

Melody looked back at her mother in shock. Could she really be all that?

"You are the Child of the TARDIS," Jack added. "And if you want to, you can change the universe."

The twisting in her gut got worse. It caused tears to spring to her eyes. She had never cried before. She had never been allowed. Now, one single, hot tear broke from her lashes and trailed down her cheek. It wasn't unpleasant. It was hopeful. Like that tear, she could be something new.

Melody took a shuttering breath and nodded her head. She would be something new.

Marching past the Captain, she knelt next to the Wolf. Rose watched her without judgment or fear. The Wolf trusted River Song. "I want to be River Song," Melody whispered. Rose nodded and squeezed her shoulder. Melody tried to smile, but it was weak. She wanted to be new, to be River, and she knew what she needed to do to do that. It was frightening. It was hard. It would be worth it. Closing her eyes, she summoned the residual regenerative energies still in her body and focused it into her hands. Then, opening her eyes to look at her parents and promising them that she would become new, she pressed her hands into the Doctor's chest.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

On a distant planet in a distant time, the Doctor stood beside the bedside of River Song and said goodbye.

"Why do we have to leave her?" Amy asked from the other side of the bed. She was holding her daughter's hand and stroking her hair. "We just got her back!"

"River needs to discover who she is without us," the Doctor said. River Song would need to choose her own paths now that she was free of Melody. She had saved him at a cost. Whatever regenerations she had left were gone. This was her one and only life. She would need to forge it on her own without any more of his interference.

"But we've missed so much..." Amy said.

Rory stepped up to answer that, something for which the Doctor was grateful. Rory Williams had become a far better man than he would ever be; a better man who could care for Amy and River in the way they deserved. Rory hugged his wife as he said, "We have had our whole lives with her."

"We didn't know," Amy protested.

"I know, love," Rory said. "But this isn't goodbye. We'll see her again. She's River."

Amy could not help it. She smiled up at her husband. "She's a superhero."

"Pardon me," a nurse said with a demur bow. "But visiting hours are ending."

The Ponds nodded. Amy squeezed her daughter's hand and leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Goodbye, River. We'll see you soon."

"We love you," Rory said.

The Ponds stood for a moment more, drinking in the sight of their beautiful daughter, and then, as one with fingers laced together, they turned and walked away, leaving the Doctor alone. He watched River Song sleep, a fond smile on his face. "Thank you, River," he said sincerely. "For everything you've done and everything you will do."

"She'll be a legend," Jack said from the doorway. The Captain was leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed.

"She already is," the Doctor replied. Reaching into his coat, he withdrew a TARDIS blue journal and placed it on the bedside table. "Until next time," he said and turned to leave, but not before pausing in front of the one man he could say was truly an old friend. "So, you're staying then?"

Jack looked at the bag at his feet. "Yeah." Returning his gaze to the slumbering woman, he continued. "I know what it's like to have to reset your life. I want to help her."

The Doctor nodded his understanding. There was so much more to his desire than a simple need to help. There would be so much more for him and River in this new future. He was happy for his friend and wished him all the luck. Clasping Jack's shoulder, he said, "Take care of her."

"I will," Jack swore.

The Doctor grinned and tucked his hands into his pocket before waltzing into the near-empty hallway.

"Doctor?"

The Doctor turned.

Jack fixed him with a serious look. "Take care of her."

The Doctor met his gaze with equal understanding and nodded once. "I will."

With that, the Doctor parted ways with the legendary Captain Jack Harkness, the Face of Boe.

**This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene: This is a Break in the Scene**

The atmosphere within the TARDIS was demur. Each occupant was to his or her own. The Doctor stood at the console watching. Amy and Rory were sitting on the stairs, their heads bowed together as they discussed secret things. Rose sat in the captain's chair with her head resting on her folded arms. It was a comfortable if not melancholy silence, one that had not been felt in the TARDIS for some time. It was the perfect atmosphere for divulging secrets.

The Doctor typed a few commands into the TARDIS console. A report appeared on the monitor. It was from the Teselecta. He had downloaded it and other reports from the machine's mainframe before returning it to the Justice Department. This particular report caused him to frown. Of course, who could truly be happy when reading a report of their death? He did not know what to make of it, but, he decided as he closed the file, he would have time later. Now, he had more important things to do.

Amy and Rory, Rassilion bless them, chose that moment to stand and make a quiet exit. Rose glanced up to watch them leave. She knew as well as he that they would need their space. Maybe he could drop them somewhere nice. Pyker XII was nice this time of year. A private beach with little fury attendants would do them a world of good. He made a note to himself to suggest it when he next saw them.

"Rose Tyler," he said by way of breaking the silence.

Rose looked up at him. She looked tired but content for the first time since she had returned to him. He had not suspected that they would be here after their rather tumultuous reunion in that diner. He had been sure things would never be the same between them, and he was right. They were not, and he would make certain they never were again. Taking the bravest steps he has ever taken in his long life, the Doctor walked up to her and pulled her gently from the chair so that she stood facing him. His dark eyes bored into hers. "Do not ever do that again."

Rose cocked an eyebrow at his statement. "You mean attempt to sacrifice my life to save yours?"

"It's not worth it," the Doctor said in all seriousness.

"Yes, it is," Rose replied smoothly.

"No, it isn't." the Doctor countered with a shake of his head. "My life without you is never worth it." That confession, sincere and honest, stopped any cheeky reply she might have made. The Doctor placed his hands on her hips and drew her close; his forehead touching hers and his eyes drinking deep her image. "I meant it. Every word of it. Dead or alive, I want you to know what I could never say." Daring to defy his fate, his rules, and his very nature, the Doctor tilted his head and placed a chaste kiss upon her pink lips. "I love you, Rose Tyler."

Rose gasped, closed her eyes, and leaned into him. Her arms came up to drape loosely over his shoulders. She was silent, as if not wanting to hope and yet unable to deny his admission. When she had returned, she had convinced herself that she felt nothing for him. She wanted to believe herself immune, but the longer she stayed, the more he burned across her heart. He was the heat of time that had ignited her destiny. She had been a fool to fight him, and a bigger fool to doubt. She was Rose Tyler. She defied impossible. Opening her eyes, she knew she was about to do it again. Her tongue found its way between her teeth, and she smiled that smile that she had not smiled in so very long. "I love you, too, my Doctor."

"My Doctor," the Doctor breathed. "Yes!" He wrapped his arms tightly around her and spun her about. "Yes, I am your Doctor, and you!" He set her down to look into her eyes once more. "You are _my_ Rose Tyler."

Rose's brown eyes were sparkling with delight. "Forever," she said.

"Forever," he swore. He grinned that manic grin that she had seen on two other faces and leaned down to seal his vow with a kiss. It was a kiss that would define all kisses in history, legend, and lore. It was the kiss that storytellers would say birthed all other true love's kisses. It was the reuniting of the Oncoming Storm and the Bad Wolf. It was an ending to a painful past of separation; it was a beginning of new adventures together. It was their war cry against impossibility. The Silence and the Doctor's impending death could wait, for right now, it was the Doctor and Rose Tyler facing the future in the TARDIS, just as it should always be.


End file.
